The mechanism: The Prohibiting Russian Uranium Imports Act phases out Russian enriched uranium through 2040, and Washington backed the ban with cash, not just prohibition. On January 5, 2026, the Department of Energy selected Centrus subsidiary American Centrifuge Operating for a task order to expand commercial-scale HALEU (high-assay low-enriched uranium) production at Piketon, Ohio — a deal that converted into a signed $900 million fixed-price contract on July 1, 2026, worth over $1 billion including options. That's not a subsidy check; it's DOE buying enrichment capacity the country doesn't otherwise have, because Centrus is the only U.S. company licensed to produce HALEU domestically. Meanwhile, the same ban tightens the raw-uranium and conversion side of the chain, where Russia (via Rosatom) was a meaningful global supplier — and that scarcity flows to miners, not enrichers.
Who cashes in