The Trump administration reportedly might allow Saudi Arabia to enrich uranium in nuclear deal


Energy Secretary Rick Perry scrapped a trip to India this week to prepare for a meeting with Saudi officials in London to pave the way for 16 U.S.-built nuclear power reactors in Saudi Arabia, two people familiar with the plans tell Bloomberg News. Perry dropped his trip to New Delhi to accommodate White House meetings to prepare for the inter-agency London meeting with Saudi energy minister Khalid Bin Abdulaziz Al-Falih, which Bloomberg calls "a critical step in months of ongoing discussions over a potential nuclear cooperation agreement." The Trump administration is reportedly considering waiving restrictions to allow Saudi Arabia to enrich and reprocess uranium.
Westinghouse Electric and other U.S. companies want to build nuclear reactors in the Middle East, but U.S. nuclear nonproliferation rules prohibiting uranium enrichment in some countries scuttled any deals while Barack Obama was president, Bloomberg reports. The talks in London could help pave the way for such deals, worth at least $80 billion over 20 to 25 years, according to the World Nuclear Association. The Energy Department confirmed that Perry canceled his India trip but would not answer any of Bloomberg's questions about London.
It's not clear if the Trump administration's push for nuclear power plants in Saudi Arabia is part of former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn's reported push to get White House approval for Middle Eastern nuclear power plants during his short tenure in the Trump administration. Flynn was connected to two companies promoting the plan, IP3 and ACU Strategic Partners, while advising candidate Trump and during the presidential transition.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
The rise of the performative male
Talking Point What the latest internet trope tells us about gender roles, dating and male illiteracy
-
5 cracking cartoons about the new Cracker Barrel logo
Cartoons Artists take on MAGA designs, real issues, and more
-
Should you downsize for retirement? Here's what to consider.
The Explainer Moving to a smaller place may seem easier, but there are also some real benefits to staying put
-
New York court tosses Trump's $500M fraud fine
Speed Read A divided appeals court threw out a hefty penalty against President Trump for fraudulently inflating his wealth
-
Trump said to seek government stake in Intel
Speed Read The president and Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan reportedly discussed the proposal at a recent meeting
-
US to take 15% cut of AI chip sales to China
Speed Read Nvidia and AMD will pay the Trump administration 15% of their revenue from selling artificial intelligence chips to China
-
NFL gets ESPN stake in deal with Disney
Speed Read The deal gives the NFL a 10% stake in Disney's ESPN sports empire and gives ESPN ownership of NFL Network
-
Samsung to make Tesla chips in $16.5B deal
Speed Read Tesla has signed a deal to get its next-generation chips from Samsung
-
FCC greenlights $8B Paramount-Skydance merger
Speed Read The Federal Communications Commission will allow Paramount to merge with the Hollywood studio Skydance
-
Tesla reports plummeting profits
Speed Read The company may soon face more problems with the expiration of federal electric vehicle tax credits
-
Dollar faces historic slump as stocks hit new high
Speed Read While stocks have recovered post-Trump tariffs, the dollar has weakened more than 10% this year