By Chris Taylor
Paducah, KY – A new contractor is now in charge of the Department of Energy's depleted uranium conversion operations at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant. B&W Conversion Services begins its 5-year, $428 million contract to oversee the conversion of DUF-6 into a more stable chemical form that can reused or disposed of. DUF-6 is a byproduct of the gaseous diffusion enrichment process and Paducah's inventory is estimated to take 25 years to convert.