The Government of Japan held a presentation ceremony on Thursday, September 8, 2022, at the Residence of the Ambassador of Japan to formally confer the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star, from the Emperor of Japan to Centrus Energy Corp. (NYSE American: LEU) President and CEO Daniel B. Poneman. Poneman was among the Spring 2020 award recipients, but the ceremony was delayed because of the pandemic.

"I am humbled and deeply grateful to the Government of Japan for this honor and wish to thank the many individuals who have made it possible.  We all know that these awards are really about teamwork, so I consider myself to be accepting this award on behalf of all the people I have had the privilege to work with on the US-Japan relationship going back nearly 30 years," Poneman said.  "The United States and Japan can develop and deploy the next generation of reactors in our own countries and around the world.  Just as importantly, the United States and Japan must cooperate in providing the nuclear fuel needed to support both existing reactors and the exciting new generation of designs coming down the road.  In doing so, we can provide energy security for our own countries, our partners, and allies, while setting and enforcing global nonproliferation standards that are second to none."

The Ambassador of Japan to the United States, Koji Tomita, delivered remarks and conferred the award on behalf of the Emperor of Japan.  The event also featured remarks from former U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz, and Managing Director, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Japan Bank for International Cooperation Tadashi Maeda. Congratulatory messages were received from Shinsuke Sugiyama, Adviser to the Minister for Foreign Affairs; Takashi Shimada, Executive Secretary to the Prime Minister; Takeo Akiba, National Security Advisor; Takaya Imai, Special Advisor to the Cabinet; Hirohide Hirai, Vice-Minister for International Affairs at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI); and Shin Hosaka, Commissioner of the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy at METI.

Poneman's full remarks from the event are available here.

This is one of the highest decorations that any foreigner can receive. Poneman's award comes "in recognition of his contributions towards enhancing the relationship between Japan and the United States of America in the energy sector." The original award announcement from the Government of Japan specifically cited Poneman's service as U.S. Deputy Secretary of Energy from 2009 to 2014, including "leading the discussion on bilateral civil nuclear cooperation through his role as the Co-chair of the U.S.-Japan Bilateral Commission on Civil Nuclear Cooperation from its establishment in 2012."

The Order of the Rising Sun was established in 1875 by Emperor Meiji to be awarded for exceptional civil or military merit. 

Centrus Energy is a trusted supplier of nuclear fuel and services for the nuclear power industry. Centrus provides value to its utility customers through the reliability and diversity of its supply sources – helping them meet the growing need for clean, affordable, carbon-free electricity. Since 1998, the Company has provided its utility customers with more than 1,750 reactor years of fuel, which is equivalent to 7 billion tons of coal. With world-class technical and engineering capabilities, Centrus is also advancing the next generation of centrifuge technologies so that America can restore its domestic uranium enrichment capability in the future. Find out more at www.centrusenergy.com.

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