Capability · Nuclear energy and propulsion
Nuclear Fuel Supply Chain
Enrichment, conversion, fuel fabrication and used-fuel recycling that supply reactors with fuel.
Assessment
Case for · why it matters
Most U.S. advanced reactors, including the microreactors DoD is buying, need HALEU, and DOE estimates domestic demand could reach 50 metric tons per year by 2035. Only Russia and China can produce HALEU at scale, so building a domestic supply is a precondition for the military reactor programs.
Case against · the skeptic’s view
DOE says the fuel most advanced designs require is not yet available at commercial scale. The only U.S. production so far is Centrus's demonstration cascade, which had produced about 920 kg by mid-2025, a small fraction of projected annual demand.
Who Builds It1
Fielded1
Limited fielding0
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Prototype0
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Development0
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Research0
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Concept0
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Placed by each organization's own maturity for this technology; TRL is self-reported or estimated, see confidence.
Systems2
| Nusano HALEU Platform | Nusano | Other | — | — |
| Stellarium | Stellaria | Other | — | — |
Breakdown3
- Advanced reactor fuel fabricationManufacturing non-traditional reactor fuels such as TRISO particles, metallic fuel and molten-salt fuel for advanced reactor designs.Limited fielding
- Uranium enrichment and HALEU productionCentrifuge, laser and other processes that raise the U-235 content of uranium, including high-assay low-enriched uranium (5 to under 20%) for advanced reactors.Fielded
- Used-fuel recycling and transmutationSeparating reusable uranium and transuranics from spent fuel and transmuting long-lived waste into shorter-lived or useful isotopes.Fielded