The Government of Javier Milei received an investment proposal that could mark a turning point for the Argentine nuclear industry. The American company Nano Energy presented to the Secretariat for Nuclear Affairs a project worth more than USD 230 million to complete the Dioxitek plant in Formosa, produce nuclear fuel and advance the production of uranium hexafluoride, a key input for the nuclear cycle in
the United States.
The initiative is already in the hands of the Ministry of Economy and, if it gets the green light, it could become the first project in the nuclear sector included in the Incentive Regime for Large Investments (RIGI). This would be a foreign capital investment in a strategic area, with the potential to supply the domestic market and open up new exports for Argentina
. The project could feed Atucha I, Atucha II and Embalse.
The plan envisages the completion of the New Dioxitek Uranium Plant (NPU), a project located in Formosa whose completion was delayed for years. The project had started to be designed in 2006 and its construction began in 2014, but during the efforts of Mauricio Macri it progressed slowly and then Alberto Fernández, in the midst of an economic crisis, abandoned it completely. According to the current authorities, the administration of Alberto Fernández left the work without funding and plagued by debts despite the fact that its completion was scheduled for 2025
.
The agreement between Dioxitek and Nano Energy had been maturing since 2025, when both parties signed a memorandum to evaluate the capabilities of the state company and the local nuclear sector. This understanding was framed in the so-called “Agreement 123” of peaceful nuclear cooperation between the United States and Argentina, a regulated and transparent platform that enables joint work on
nuclear matters.
During Argentina Week, in New York, the formal presentation of the offer ended up taking shape. There, officials and industry leaders advanced the partnership scheme between the Secretariat for Nuclear Affairs, Dioxitek and the US firm. If the proposal succeeds, Nano would provide the capital to complete the plant and become associated with production, while the facility would remain the property
of the state company. The “Argentina Week” event was fundamental to the closing of the proposal.
The investment includes two central milestones. The first is the completion, start-up and operation of the NPU-1 facility to produce uranium dioxide, an essential input to the nuclear cycle. The second aims to build and operate a complementary unit to convert this material into uranium hexafluoride, a strategic product for enrichment processes abroad
. If
completed, the project would supply Atucha I, Atucha II and Embalse with local production, with an estimated capacity of 210 tons per year. At the same time, it would open the door to strategic exports to the international nuclear fuel market, in a context in which a boom in global demand is expected for the construction of almost 70 new power plants
