France’s struggle to be the world’s king of nuclear reactor sales
The real problem, ….. is that Areva’s main reactor offering, one of the most advanced on the market, is too expensive—
France Aims to Be Atop the Nuclear Pile – WSJ.com, 29 Nov 10, “……..In an attempt to restore its companies to prominence, the French government has reorganized the nation’s nuclear sector.
Among other things, state-controlled utility Électricité de France SA, or EDF, has been given a leading role in bidding on nuclear projects abroad and has been told to boost its stake in state-owned Areva, the country’s sole builder of nuclear reactors.
But critics contend that the reorganization is unnecessary and possibly counterproductive. The real problem, they say, is that Areva’s main reactor offering, one of the most advanced on the market, is too expensive—a problem Areva already has begun to address by forming a joint venture with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. to develop a smaller, cheaper reactor.
Tying Areva more closely to EDF not only doesn’t solve that problem, critics say, but might create others: It could make it harder for Areva to sell reactors to other utilities, especially those that compete directly with EDF for power-supply contracts,
“Having a gigantic nuclear group that would design, build and operate reactors is such a bad solution,” says Jean-Marie Chevalier, a nuclear-industry expert at Paris Dauphine University. “It would be like Air France having a stake in Airbus, and British Airways asking Air France when it wants to buy an aircraft.”…..
No comments yet.
Leave a Reply
-
Archives
- May 2012 (262)
- April 2012 (259)
- March 2012 (342)
- February 2012 (304)
- January 2012 (259)
- December 2011 (274)
- November 2011 (331)
- October 2011 (247)
- September 2011 (272)
- August 2011 (249)
- July 2011 (227)
- June 2011 (195)
-
Categories
- 1
- 1 NUCLEAR ISSUES
- business and costs
- climate change
- ENERGY
- environment
- health
- history
- indigenous issues
- Legal
- marketing of nuclear
- media
- opposition to nuclear
- people
- politics
- politics international
- Religion and ethics
- safety and incidents
- secrets,lies and civil liberties
- spinbuster
- technology
- Uranium
- wastes
- weapons and war
- 2 WORLD
- ACTION
- AFRICA
- AUSTRALIA
- Christina background info
- Christina's notes
- Christina's themes
- general
- Reference
- resources – print
- Resources -audiovicual
-
RSS
Entries RSS
Comments RSS












