To meet the exponential growth in energy demand from AI, quantum computing and next-generation security systems, we must invest in clean, scalable, always-on power.
Trump says US will loosen rules in push to win AI race
The Trump administration released a new artificial intelligence blueprint that aims to loosen environmental rules and vastly expand AI exports to allies, in a bid to maintain the American edge over China in the critical technology.
In 1943, the United States made history in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, unleashing the power of the atom through bold innovation and unmatched urgency. That mission reshaped the world. Today, we return to that same soil, not to remember the past, but to spark the future.
Artificial Intelligence is being called the “Manhattan Project” of our time — a global race that will define national power, technological superiority and the very structure of the 21st-century economy.
But there’s a reality we cannot overlook: We can only lead in AI if we can power AI. We can only power AI through nuclear energy. And we can only fuel nuclear energy expansion by making more enriched uranium.
Nuclear energy provides clean, scalable power for AI
We began that path to U.S. AI leadership with the recent opening of Orano’s Project IKE office to build America’s new uranium enrichment facility in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The support of federal and state leaders at our ribbon-cutting exemplifies the proactive engagement to make an expanded, secure, domestic nuclear fuel supply into a reality.
Powering AI with nuclear is not rhetoric — it is physics and geopolitics. Data centers and machine learning algorithms consume enormous amounts of electricity. To meet the exponential growth in energy demand from AI, quantum computing and next-generation security systems, we must invest in clean, scalable, always-on power.
Only nuclear energy can deliver that performance — at scale, with security and without interruption.
Orano is proud to answer that call by developing a new uranium enrichment facility in Oak Ridge via the largest single investment in Tennessee’s history.
More importantly, Orano’s multi-billion dollar investment in Project IKE would be but the latest extension and example of the company’s core capabilities — from mining and enrichment, to delivery and recycling — to manage the complete nuclear fuel cycle as envisioned by Pres. Trump.
Trump’s recent executive orders laid out a bold strategy to restore American energy dominance and quadruple nuclear capacity by 2050. The first actions in achieving that strategy begin in Oak Ridge.
Oak Ridge is epicenter of America’s technological future
Orano is deploying its proven centrifuge technology and six decades of U.S. nuclear expertise to ensure America has a significant, secure, domestic supply of enriched uranium to power both today’s reactors and tomorrow’s advanced designs.
With Project IKE, we are not only rebuilding a critical part of America’s energy infrastructure — we are helping to secure its technological future.
The United States must lead the world in Artificial Intelligence. But leadership in AI demands leadership in energy. And energy dominance requires nuclear energy.
The future is clear. It’s powered by enriched uranium. It’s built on American soil. And today, that future starts with Project IKE.
Jean-Luc Palayer is the Chief Executive Officer and President of Orano USA. He oversees Orano’s business activities in the United States, including the Project IKE development of America’s new uranium enrichment facility in Oak Ridge, Tennessee.