An Idaho-based company that plans to build a uranium deconversion plant in southeastern New Mexico is struggling to find funding for the $125 million project.
International Isotopes President Steve Laflin says with oil prices falling and a surplus on the market, no one is interested in investing in nuclear projects.
The plant would be capable of deconverting depleted uranium tails produced by Urenco USA's enrichment plant in nearby Eunice.
The process will make the byproducts of uranium enrichment safe for long-term disposal while recycling chemicals that can be used in solar panels and medical equipment.
Laflin's company has a contract with Urenco to acquire 50 percent of the raw materials it's seeking for its patented process. But he says that's only half of what the company needs to get financed.
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Information from: Hobbs News-Sun, http://www.hobbsnews.com
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