"A push by congressional leaders to fund an embattled uranium enrichment project in Ohio has triggered strong bipartisan backlash in the House and accusations that leading GOP figures are backing earmarks for a project with similarities to the bankrupt solar firm Solyndra."
"Rep. Steve Pearce (R-N.M.) is spearheading an effort in the House to block millions of dollars tucked away in three different spending bills moving through Congress for Bethesda, Md.-based U.S. Enrichment Corp. (USEC) to operate the Energy Department's American Centrifuge Plant in Piketon, Ohio. In a case of strange political bedfellows, Reps. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.) have also joined the cause, questioning why the government is funding the project.
All have different reasons for opposing the funding.
'It looks like they're picking another loser' not long after DOE gave a half-billion-dollar loan guarantee to Solyndra, Pearce said of the $5 billion uranium enrichment plant in Ohio.
USEC has warned that without another infusion of federal funds, it will be forced to close the Ohio plant by the end of the month. The company ultimately hopes to secure a $2 billion DOE loan guarantee."
Hannah Northey and Manuel Quinones report for E&E Daily May 18, 2012.
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