Oklo 10-Q: Meta Funds Paid to Centrus for HALEU, Deliveries From 2029
Oklo's 10-Q says an undisclosed initial Meta payment left escrow on Nov. 2 and went to Centrus as credit toward HALEU orders, with deliveries expected from 2029. The Sept. 30 supply agreement is still subject to conditions.
Chips & Power DeskEdited by Ege Erten
3 min readAI-assisted
Follows our story: Oklo and Meta's 1.2 GW Ohio Project: Aurora Reactors Targeted by 2034
Rendering of an Oklo Aurora powerhouse. Oklo's Ohio campus is planned; the image is an illustration, not the Pike County site.
Image: Oklo (rendering)
Source · Press image from the Oklo website, used for news reporting.
An initial Meta payment toward Oklo's planned 1.2 GW Ohio reactor campus was released from escrow on Nov. 2 and paid directly to Centrus Energy as a credit toward fuel orders, Oklo said in its third-quarter 10-Q filed Nov. 6. Oklo did not state the amount. Only Oklo's filing reports the payment; Centrus's 10-Q, signed Nov. 5, does not mention it.
The payment follows a supply agreement Oklo signed with Centrus on Sept. 30 under its Jan. 5 prepayment agreement with Meta, according to the filing. That agreement supports powerhouses built for Meta and is subject to conditions Oklo did not describe. As Voltgrid reported on Oct. 31, the fuel side of the Pike County project then looked like a letter of intent; Oklo's 10-Q says the supply agreement was signed on Sept. 30 subject to certain conditions, and Centrus's 10-Q says the June letter of intent has been definitized.
The point for data-center power is fuel, not reactors. Oklo's Aurora can run on high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU), enriched above 5% and below 20% U-235, and Oklo says it has secured five metric tons of HALEU from recovered EBR-II uranium for its first deployment; the Centrus supply is for the Ohio campus. World Nuclear News noted on June 19 that there was no commercial US source then. Oklo's filing describes the payment as a credit toward fuel orders; no quantity, price or delivery slot is public. The NRC's Oklo page, updated Oct. 27, lists pre-application work only and no licence application for Ohio.
How a Prepayment Reaches the Fuel Supplier
A prepayment agreement lets a power buyer pay before the plant exists. Under Oklo's Jan. 5 agreement, Meta can prepay for power and fund powerhouse deployment for the planned 1.2 GW Pike County campus, Oklo's 10-Q says. The filing adds that on Nov. 2 an initial amount was released from escrow and paid to Centrus as a credit toward fuel orders. Only Oklo's filing reports that step.
Fuel is the reason to pay early. Centrus would supply HALEU for up to five Aurora powerhouses, with deliveries expected from 2029, and says it will come from its Piketon plant, whose DOE lease expires Oct. 1, 2027. A credit toward orders is not delivered fuel: no quantity or price is public, and Oklo says it is still talking to other suppliers.
Done: the Nov 2 escrow release (per Oklo) and the Sept 30 agreement, which is subject to conditions. Planned: Piketon HALEU from 2029 and Oklo's 1.2 GW Ohio campus, targeted 2030-2034.
Illustration (AI-generated)
What Centrus Has Agreed to Supply Oklo
The June letter of intent covered domestically produced HALEU for multiple years of fuel for up to five Aurora powerhouses, with deliveries expected from 2029. Centrus's own 10-Q, filed Nov. 5, says that letter has since been definitized and that the HALEU will come from its American Centrifuge Plant in Pike County, the same county as the planned campus. When World Nuclear News covered the letter on June 19, the definitive contract, possibly with prepayments from Oklo, was still to be negotiated.
Oklo is not relying on one supplier. The 10-Q says it continues to hold talks with other potential HALEU suppliers for its first units and later scaling. Centrus, for its part, signed supply agreements with prepayments with X-energy (LEU and HALEU), Radiant and Antares (HALEU) in the third quarter, and reported a backlog of $7.0 billion at Sept. 30 that extends to 2040, part of it contingent on its Piketon build-out.
What Is Not Confirmed About the Oklo HALEU Deal
Neither company has disclosed the escrow amount, the HALEU volume or price, the size of Meta's total prepayment, or the conditions on the Sept. 30 agreement. Centrus says the HALEU will come from its Piketon plant, whose lease with the Department of Energy expires on Oct. 1, 2027; DOE has indicated it will work to complete a long-term extension before Dec. 31, 2026 but is under no obligation, according to Centrus's 10-Q. Oklo targets its first phase as early as 2030 and up to the full 1.2 GW by 2034; the campus is planned, not under construction, and the 1.2 GW is not a purchase commitment.
Oklo ended September with about $3.13 billion in cash, cash equivalents and marketable debt securities, its filing shows. The next checks are DOE's stated aim of a long-term Piketon lease extension before Dec. 31, 2026 (with no obligation) and any Ohio licence application, none of which is filed.
