Lightbridge To Conduct Nuclear Energy Assessments For The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Member States

MCLEAN, Va., Dec. 2, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Lightbridge Corporation (Nasdaq:LTBR), the leading innovator of advanced nuclear fuel designs and provider of nuclear energy consulting services to commercial and governmental organizations, today announced that it has entered into a consulting contract with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Member States to assess regional cooperation in the development of civilian nuclear power programs for electricity generation and water desalination.   

The GCC, a political and economic union that comprises the Gulf states of the Kingdom of Bahrain, State of Kuwait, Sultanate of Oman, State of Qatar, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates, formalized the contract with Lightbridge and its partner Exelon Generation Company, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Exelon Corporation (NYSE:EXC), and other leading nuclear consultants. The studies will take place over a six-month period and will be completed by the second quarter of 2011.

"With a 40 percent increase in global energy demand predicted over the next two decades, according to leading energy industry organizations, massive infrastructure investment will be necessary to meet this demand in all regions of the world, including the Middle East," said Seth Grae, president and CEO of Lightbridge. "We've had a long-standing dialogue with the GCC and each of its Member States, and currently Lightbridge is working in some of these countries. By engaging Lightbridge and its partners at this higher level to assess the future nuclear energy landscape of these countries, the GCC is taking important steps toward aligning the interests and needs of its Member States to establish a blueprint for regional standards of nuclear power generation."

Lightbridge will perform a group of studies to identify and evaluate seven areas to identify the relative value and implementation options that could result from regional cooperation for each GCC Member State as they progress with their individual nuclear power programs. The areas of evaluation include:

• Legal Issues and Liability
• Nuclear Regulation
• Site Assessment
• Training, R&D, Safety Culture and Human Resource Capacity Building
• Fuel Security and Supply
• Nuclear Waste Management
• Emergency Response

While Lightbridge will manage the overall project, including general integration and collective value assessment, the Company will tap partner organizations for additional expertise. Exelon will have a significant role in conducting studies in three of the seven assessment areas: Training, R&D, Safety Culture and Human Resource Capacity Building; Fuel Security and Supply; and Emergency Response.

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