Portsmouth

The Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant at Piketon, Ohio, was built from 1952 to 1956. The plant was one of three large gaseous diffusion plants in the United States initially constructed to produce enriched uranium to support the nation’s nuclear weapons program and U.S. Navy, and later enriched uranium for use by commercial nuclear reactors. It occupies about 1,200 acres of the 3,777-acre Portsmouth Site (PORTS). Weapons-grade uranium enrichment was later suspended, and after the Cold War the production facilities were leased to the private sector. In 2001, gaseous diffusion enrichment operations were discontinued at the site. DOE's Office of Environmental Management commenced its environmental cleanup program at the site in 1989, and the effort continues today in cooperation with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA). Decontamination and decommissioning (D&D) of the plant commenced in 2011.

• Designate 4,000 acres for industrial use around current and proposed PORTS operations to support the nuclear energy industry and multiple DOE missions: Centrus Energy’s uranium enrichment plant, Oklo’s Nuclear Power Campus, DUF6 storage and conversion plant operations, the Onsite Waste Disposal Facility, and a consolidated federal storage facility with the option for reprocessing.

• Consistent, reliable, and sufficient funding to meet DFF&O and Consent Order obligations to complete on and off property environmental cleanup projects.

• Technical assistance for local governments to enhance meaningful engagement, conduct independent oversight on environmental studies and mitigation activities, and establish emergency preparedness and response programs, risk management and mitigation programs, and workforce development programs.

• Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA), or a separate compensation program, for Pike County residents living in zip codes 45661, 45613, 45648, and 45690 who are or become inflicted with cancers and illnesses listed in the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act (EEOICPA) and RECA.

Jackson County, Ohio

Pike County, Ohio

Ross County, Ohio

Scioto County, Ohio

Village of Piketon, Ohio

Scioto Valley Piketon Area Council of Governments (SVPA COG)

• Mission: The SVPA COG was formed to empower cooperation, collaboration, and partnership between the local governments and with DOE to produce mutually beneficial outcomes related to the environmental cleanup of PORTS and surrounding properties, the health and safety of the host community’s constituents, and the economic impacts of DOE’s decisions.

• Contact:Info@svpacog.org

Site Specific Advisory Board (SSAB)

• Mission: The PORTS SSAB is a stakeholder board that provides advice, information, and recommendations on issues affecting the EM program at Portsmouth site.

• Contact: Julie Galloway, Project Manager, julie@ports-ssab.org; Phone: (740) 289-5249 ext. 456

Southern Ohio Diversification Initiative (SODI)

• Mission: SODI’s mission is to improve the quality of life for Jackson, Pike, Ross, and Scioto Counties through economic diversification, development of underutilized land and facilities at PORTS, and continued support of local industry.

• Contact: Steve Shepherd, Executive Director, sodiexec@outlook.com; Phone: (740) 897-2130

Southern Ohio Cleanup Company – Decontamination & Decommissioning

• Southern Ohio Cleanup Company is made up of Amentum, Fluor and Cavendish Nuclear.

North Wind Dynamics - Infrastructure Support Services

Mission Conversion Services Alliance – DUF6 Conversion and Operations and Site Mission Support

• Mission Conversion Services Alliance is made up of Atkins, Westinghouse and Amentum

‍ Enterprise Technical Assistance Services – Technical Services Support

Federal Government

• U.S. Senator Bernie Moreno (R)

• U.S. Senator Jon Husted (R)

• U.S. Rep. Dave Taylor (R) (OH-02)

• U.S. Rep. Michael Rulli (R) (OH-06)

State Government

• Governor Mike DeWine (R)

• State Sen. Terry Johnson (R) (District 14)

• State Sen. Michael D. Dovilla (R) (District 17)

• State Rep. Justin Pizzuli (R) (District 90)

• State Rep. Bob Peterson (R) (District 91)

• State Rep. Jason Stephens (R) (District 93)

Local Government

• Scioto County Commission Chairman, Scottie Powell

• Piketon Mayor Billy Spencer

Portsmouth Site Specific Advisory Board

• Phone: (740) 289-5249; Email: julie@ports-ssab.org

Portsmouth/Paducah Project Office

• Phone: (859) 219-4035; Email: PublicAffairs.PPPO@pppo.gov

• Special Nuclear Materials and Spent Nuclear Fuel

• Facility Deactivation and Decommissioning

In March 2024, the Office of Environmental Management released a Strategic Vision for 2024-2034.

Planned Cleanup Scope 2024–2034

DOE expects to complete the demolition of the two remaining process buildings over the next decade. In 2024, deactivation work will be completed on the second process building to be addressed, the X-333 Process Building. This will include disposal of deactivation debris in the OSWDF and removal of bulk asbestos containing material. The X-333 Process Building is scheduled to be demolished by 2031. Also, by 2031, DOE expects to complete deactivation of the third and final process building, the X-330 Process Building, followed by demolition by 2034

The full Portsmouth Strategic Vision is available here.

Uranium enrichment to produce high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) resumed in 2023 at a plant owned by Centrus Energy Corp. on the former Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant in Piketon, OH. The facility marked the first time an American company produced HALEU in the United States. The plant started enrichment with 16 centrifuges capable of producing about a ton of HALEU per year. The plant has capacity for 5,760 centrifuges, and Centrus has the potential to build another plant on the site. With the potential to employ up to 500 employees on the site, the plant will create thousands of jobs throughout the HALEU supply chain. 

Oklo will build its second and third commercial 15-MWe Aurora Powerhouse reactors on land owned by the Southern Ohio Diversification Initiative (SODI), a commercial reuse organization (CRO) tasked by the DOE to re-industrialize land around the Historic Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant (PORTS) south of Piketon, OH. The site will host two commercial 15-MWe Aurora powerhouses for a combined total of 30 MWe of energy production and “over 50 MW of clean heating, with opportunities to expand.” The project was named in the DOE Reactor Pilot Program, groundbreaking for the first powerhouse began on September 22, and power production could begin as soon as 2028.

Oklo signed an agreement with Meta to advance Oklo’s plans to develop a 1.2 GW power campus in Pike County, Ohio, to support Meta’s data centers in the region. The agreement provides a mechanism for Meta to prepay for power and provide funding to advance project certainty for Oklo’s Aurora powerhouse deployment.

Read more here.