More Nuclear Means More Jobs in Struggling Ohio
Nicolas Loris /
Today, USEC, Duke Energy and the international nuclear company AREVA announced plans for a new 1,650-megawatt nuclear reactor to be built in Piketon, Ohio, creating even more jobs for southern Ohio. The announcement comes almost a year after USEC announced it would build a new uranium enrichment plant in Piketon.
Nuclear plants are fueled with low-enriched uranium and the U.S. currently has very limited uranium enrichment capabilities. While America’s limited domestic enrichment is currently provided by USEC’s plant in Paducah, Kentucky, the company is building a new $3.5 billion plant in Piketon (three other enrichment plants are also being built or planned in the U.S.). USEC estimates that the American Centrifuge Project will create 3,300 jobs in Ohio, as well as an additional 3,000 direct and indirect jobs for USEC’s suppliers to expand appropriately to manufacture the centrifuge machine parts. Residents of Pike County, the county with third highest unemployment rate in Ohio at 15.1 percent, are happy:
I think it’s for the greater good, but I hope they are stringent about safety protocols,” said Piketon resident Kevin McClary. “I’ve seen smiles on people’s faces because of the jobs it will bring on in.”