Despite building delays in Finland, AREVA seeks EPR nuclear contract in California

Areva eyes California’s Central Valley for nuclear reactors San Francisco Business Times – by Steven E.F. Brown December 29, 2009

French nuclear power giant AREVA is talking to a group of investors about putting one or two atomic power plants in California’s Central Valley.

Paris-based Areva said Tuesday it’s signed a letter of intent with Fresno Nuclear Eneegy Group LLC, which it calls “a group of investors,” about early work necessary to bring the company’s advanced EPR technology to California…………

Areva has been working on the EPR project in Finland for four years, a third reactor on an island at Olkiluoto, on the country’s southwestern coast. That 1,600 megawatt project was set to start generating power this year, but has been delayed.

December 30, 2009 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, USA | antinuclear, AREVA, EDF, energy efficiency, France, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear spin

1 Comment »

Hello,
This shows again that nuclear energy is no solution at all. Too late, too dangerous, too expensive. Safety and building problems has already led to a more than 3 year delay. STUK, the Finnish safety authority, detected such serious safety shortcomings, that it threatend with a halt to construction, if these problems were not solved.
Costs have skyrocketed to more than €5 billion, twice the original cost of €2,5 billion. The EPR is just a fossil from the nineties, with 1600 MW the largest ever known. Large scale electricty is out, small, decentralized power plants are the future.
In the meantime, the UK, where 4 EPR’s were planned by EDF, let it know that 32 GW of windpower will be build offshore by 2020. This will shake the planning of new nuclear reactors completely. They will not be competitive any more with wind power. A real energy revolution is taking place in Europe and elsewheer. The last 2 years, more wind and sun power is build in the EU than fossil fuel or nuclear plants. IN 2009, renewable energy made out 61% of new power plants in the EU. From 2010 wind energy is cheaper than nuclear and from 2020 wind will be cheaper than coal. Thus, new coal and nuclear plants will be losing money for 3/4 or 100% of their lifetimes. They will get problems with financing: which bank will invest in such a bad, money loosing project anymore?
Climate Change
For fighting the Greenhouse problem, nuclear has always been too late. When you start planning and construction today, a new nuclear power plant will not be ready before 2020 at the earliest. But by 2020 the emission of greenhouse gasses [GHG] has to be reduced by 30%. It’s clear, nuclear can’t play any role in reducing the emission of GHG. Renewables and a better energy effinciency will have to do he job. And they can. In 2020 there wil be at least 350.000 MW of wind energy power installed in the EU. Now, febr. 2010, it stands at 75 GW. Even solar PV power will compete with nuclear around 2025, without subsidies.
Coal and nuclear have always been heavily subsidized by goverments.
By 2025 all nulear and coal power plants in the EU can be closed. No one must be build from now on.
Better for the climate, the environment and for our health.
Future is for renewables!

Comment by joop boer | February 8, 2010 | Reply

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