Washington Post: The financially troubled uranium enrichment firm USEC is to receive up to $280 million from the US Department of Energy to finish its American Centrifuge plant in Piketon, Ohio. The plant is over budget and behind schedule, which, according to securities exchange documents submitted by the company, would lead to bankruptcy if DOE did not provide $500 million in loan guarantees by the end of June. Instead of providing a loan, DOE is to take ownership of the plant as part of the deal. It will return the plant to USEC if the company meets some set targets. The new plant, when operational, will cut USEC’s fuel production costs and replace its gaseous diffusion enrichment plant in Kentucky.