Centrus has loss in third quarter

Centrus Energy Corp., Bethesda, Md., had a net loss in the third quarter, which the uranium broker and enrichment technology developer attributed in part to costs associated with a Department of Energy uranium contract.

Centrus lost about $5 million, or $0.30 a share, in the third quarter, compared with earnings of about $8.2 million or $0.52 a share, in the year-ago quarter. Quarterly revenue was about $57.7 million, down year-over-year from about $51.3 million, Centrus reported Monday evening in a press release.

Revenue from the flagship LEU segment, which includes sales of uranium fuel and natural uranium, was about $34.8 million in the three months ended Sept. 30, down from almost $40.5  million a year ago. Higher prices could not quite make up for fewer orders, Centrus said in its earnings release.

Quarterly revenue from Centrus’ Technical Solutions segment, the enrichment-technology business with high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) enrichment and deconversion contracts with the Department of Energy, was about $22.9 million, up from about $10.8 million last year, at which time the company had not started producing HALEU hexafluoride for DOE.

During the quarter, Centrus’ American Centrifuge Operating subsidiary, revenue for which is bookkept under Technical Services, got a DOE contract for HALEU deconversion. Centrus shared the award, which has a total ordering ceiling of $2.7 billion and a floor of $2 million per awardee, with five other companies. 

Centrus was already enriching HALEU for civilian programs within the DOE’s Office of Science under a separate contract awarded in 2022 and worth $1 billion over 10 years, with options. That deal requires Centrus to deliver 900 kilograms to DOE in most of the contract’s option years. Centrus has delivered 332 kilograms of HALEU to DOE under this contract, the company reported Monday.

Meanwhile, Centrus said it is still seeking a waiver to import Russian uranium right up until a total U.S. ban kicks in on Jan. 1, 2028. The company already has waivers for 2024 and 2025, but DOE still has yet to grant requested waivers for 2026 and 2027, Centrus said Monday.

The company was to host an earnings call with investor analysts at 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday morning.

The company’s AC-100M technology could be the foundation of a future defense uranium enrichment plant that could be used for the National Nuclear Security Administration’s defense work.