Uranium facility's loan plan is a no-go

The Columbus Dispatch ^ | Tuesday, July 28, 2009 3:11 AM | Jonathan Riskind

[staytrue]

WASHINGTON -- The Obama administration will not grant a $2 billion loan guarantee for a planned uranium-enrichment facility in Piketon, Ohio, causing the initiative to go into financial meltdown, the company and independent sources confirmed last night.

The U.S. Department of Energy's decision means "we are now forced to initiate steps to demobilize the project," said Elizabeth Stuckle, a spokeswoman for USEC. That's the company that is trying to build the $3.5 billion advanced-technology plant on the same site where it ran the Cold War-era uranium-enrichment facility that has been shuttered since 2001...

"Instead of creating thousands of jobs across the country, we are faced with losing them," Stuckle said, noting that President Barack Obama voiced support for the loan guarantee when he campaigned in Ohio. "It is unclear how DOE expects to find innovative technologies that assume zero risk."

USEC has been indicating for months that without the loan guarantee from the Department of Energy -- which would come from a $38.5 billion program launched by the Bush administration to encourage various renewable-energy and nuclear-power ventures -- the Piketon project would be unable to secure needed final financing. ...

Overall, the project employs 5,700 directly or indirectly, with jobs ranging from construction of the plant to work on the enrichment-facility components and supplies in eight states, the company says. In Piketon, more than 600 are working, and a fully operating plant would employ about 400 for years to come.

[staytrue]

This is totally on Obama. 5000 jobs lost on a shovel ready project that would reduce greenhouse gases, reduce US dependence on foreign oil and required only a loan guarantee, not federal subsidies and no grants.

[Tarpon]

If greenhouse gas is your religion, nuclear power is your salvation.

Tells you a lot about what is really going on. China is building 10 nuclear power plants as fast as they can.

Spread far and wide.

[Neoliberalnot]

Middle-east muslim oil shieks don’t take kindly to nuclear energy. Surprise, surprise.

[GladesGuru]

American commies/enviros also don’t like energy independence.

From Saul Alinsky’s perspective, Obama made a good decision.

[SunkenCiv]

The Obama administration will not grant a $2 billion loan guarantee for a planned uranium-enrichment facility in Piketon, Ohio, causing the initiative to go into financial meltdown.

[kidd]

I’m unfamiliar with the situation. Do they supply the military or utilities or both?

USEC is only seeking a loan guarantee from the government, not a loan itself. While $2B is a big chunk of change, is the government really their last resort as a co-signer?

Have they sought agreements from utilities with nuclear plants?

[EdReform]

BTTT

[EdReform]

"Instead of creating thousands of jobs across the country, we are faced with losing them," Stuckle said, noting that President Barack Obama voiced support for the loan guarantee when he campaigned in Ohio.

[Brad from Tennessee]

Despite his rhetoric, Obama will use the bureaucracy to end or stall any nuclear energy project on U.S. soil. As the only practical alternative to fossil fuel power generation, nuclear threatens the development of windmills, solar-thermal, biofuels, wave-power and other weak and costly “green alternatives.” Also, since nuclear power facilities produce little or no carbon emissions, they cannot be taxed liked plants burning coal, natural gas or oil.

Cutting carbon emissions is not the primary function of the pending U.S. Cap-and-Trade bill. The true purposes are the creation of new tax revenue, establishing a carbon credit trading market and expanding government control including the nationalization of the energy market.

The White House is the willing tool of GE, Al Gore's Generation Investment Management fund, Goldman Sachs, and other high-powered for-profit players in the “green energy” and carbon trading industries. Within days of being sworn into office Obama and Nevada Sen. Harry Reid began the administrative process of closing Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository. This facility was essential to the future of U.S. nuclear energy.

Those affected—every ratepayer in the U.S.—by the shuttering of the Piketon project should raise holy Hell with congressmen, news media, the local and national chambers of commerce and labor unions representing nuclear workers.

E-mail form for Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown (D):

http://brown.senate.gov/contact/

E-mail form for Ohio Senator George Voinovich (R):

http://voinovich.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Contact.ContactForm

[ASOC]

The company affected lays out its case here
http://www.usec.com/americancentrifuge_loanguarantee.htm

If we are not going to build new Nuke plants, then this USEC plant is unneeded. So read the tea leaves, Bammy is telegraphing his move - No Nukes.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Thanks.