Enriched Uranium Operations Modernization Activities at the Y-12 National Security Complex

The Y-12 National Security Complex enriched uranium mission includes meeting national security requirements for the nuclear stockpile, naval reactors, and nuclear non-proliferation. Enriched uranium operations at Y-12 occur in decades-old buildings. Building 9212 is over 70 years old, and Buildings 9215 and 9204-2E are both from the 1950s and 1960s. To meet current and future mission requirements, Y-12 has developed a strategy for modernization. The two primary components of the modernization strategy are (1) to phase out mission dependency on Building 9212, which contains most of the enriched uranium operations, and (2) to complete the construction of and transition to the Uranium Processing Facility (UPF). New capabilities will be established with the construction of the UPF. The modernization strategy also relies on the development of new technologies. This approach represents Y-12’s strategy to safely and securely sustain and modernize enriched uranium capabilities and infrastructure at Y-12 through the 2040s.