USEC Inc. (NYSE: USU) today held its annual meeting of stockholders and
reported on the American
Centrifuge research, development and demonstration (RD&D) program
being conducted at facilities in Ohio and Tennessee.
Stockholders voted by approximately 80 percent to approve a reverse
stock split. Details regarding the reverse stock split can be found in a
separate news release issued today and available at www.usec.com.
John K. Welch, USEC president and chief executive officer, said the
aftermath of damage to Japanese reactors following the March 2011
earthquake and tsunami is still affecting the nuclear fuel industry.
Many Japanese reactors remain idle and prices for low-enriched uranium
fuel have declined over the past two years due to oversupply in the
market. But despite these near-term challenges, “Looking out in the
longer term, we think our industry has a bright future.”
Approximately 65 reactors are under construction worldwide, including
four in the United States, and many of these international reactors will
be completed over the next several years. More than 100 more reactors
are on the drawing board, especially in China and emerging markets in
Asia and the Middle East. “The American Centrifuge Plant will be coming
on line at the right time to meet this new demand, and can be expanded
in the future to meet growing demand in the 2020s,” Welch said.
“As concerns about climate change grow, nuclear power remains the only
carbon-free source of 24/7 base load electric power. Nuclear power needs
to be part of the solution and part of the world’s energy mix. The
environmental community is waking up to this fact, and that recognition
could help drive growth for our industry,” Welch said. “It is our strong
belief that American Centrifuge is the key to our future and its
successful deployment will increase the value of the enterprise.”
Welch noted that USEC has made substantial progress with a two-year,
cost-sharing research, development and demonstration program designed to
enhance the technical and financial readiness of the centrifuge
technology. The company plans to update its application with the DOE
Loan Guarantee Office later this year.
To read a copy of Welch’s complete remarks to shareholders, please go to
Speeches in the Media section of the Company’s website, www.usec.com.
During the meeting, stockholders voted to reelect seven directors for a
one-year term. Stockholders also approved an advisory resolution on
executive compensation and ratified the appointment of
PricewaterhouseCoopers as the Company’s independent auditors for 2013. A
stockholder proposal regarding executive compensation was supported by
less than 20 percent of the votes cast. The specific voting results will
be provided in a current report on Form 8-K.
USEC Inc., a global energy company, is a leading supplier of enriched
uranium fuel for commercial nuclear power plants.
Forward-Looking Statements:
This news release contains “forward-looking statements” within the
meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 – that is,
statements related to future events. In this context, forward-looking
statements may address our expected future business and financial
performance, and often contain words such as “expects”, “anticipates”,
“intends”, “plans”, “believes”, “will” and other words of similar
meaning. Forward-looking statements by their nature address matters that
are, to different degrees, uncertain. For USEC, particular risks and
uncertainties that could cause our actual future results to differ
materially from those expressed in our forward-looking statements
include, but are not limited to: risks related to the ongoing transition
of USEC’s business, including uncertainty regarding the transition of
the Paducah gaseous diffusion plant and uncertainty regarding continued
funding for the American Centrifuge project; the continued impact of the
March 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan on the nuclear industry and
on our business, results of operations and prospects; the impact and
potential extended duration of the current supply/demand imbalance in
the market for low enriched uranium; uncertainty regarding the timing,
amount and availability of additional funding for the research,
development and demonstration (RD&D) program and the dependency of
government funding on Congressional appropriations; restrictions in our
credit facility on our spending on the American Centrifuge project and
the potential for us to demobilize the project; limitations on our
ability to provide any required cost sharing under the RD&D program;
uncertainty concerning our ability through the RD&D program to
demonstrate the technical and financial readiness of the centrifuge
technology for commercialization; uncertainty concerning the ultimate
success of our efforts to obtain a loan guarantee from DOE and other
financing for the American Centrifuge project and the timing and terms
thereof; potential changes in our anticipated ownership of or role in
the American Centrifuge project, including as a result of the need to
raise additional capital to finance the project; the impact of actions
we have taken or may take to reduce spending on the American Centrifuge
project, including the potential loss of key suppliers and employees,
and impacts to cost and schedule; the impact of delays in the American
Centrifuge project and uncertainty regarding our ability to remobilize
the project; the potential for DOE to seek to terminate or exercise its
remedies under the RD&D cooperative agreement or the June 2002 DOE-USEC
agreement; changes in U.S. government priorities and the availability of
government funding, including loan guarantees; and other risks and
uncertainties discussed in our filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K and quarterly
reports on Form 10-Q, which are available on our website at www.usec.com.
We do not undertake to update our forward-looking statements except as
required by law.
Copyright Business Wire 2013