Hearing on ConverDyn Request to Stop DOE Uranium Transfers Set for Today

A hearing is scheduled for today on ConverDyn’s motion for an injunction to block the Department of Energy from moving forward with a planned transfer of excess uranium while a lawsuit the company has filed against DOE is pending. DOE uses its transfers of excess uranium, the next of which is scheduled for the end of this month, to help fund D&D activities at the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant, as well as some National Nuclear Security Administration programs. ConverDyn has claimed in its lawsuit, though, that DOE’s policy will cost it $40.5 million in lost revenue over the next two years. DOE has argued that ConverDyn’s motion for an injunction would cause “significant harm to the public interest” by bringing the Portsmouth D&D project to a near-halt and by disrupting U.S. nonproliferation efforts.