nuclear-news

French nuclear firm EDF’s financial woes

“The U.S. provision is bad news,”…… Results were also hurt by “poor availability” of nuclear reactors in France and the U.K……EDF has expanded in Europe, China and the U.S., driving up debt,

EDF Net Income Tumbles 47% After Outlook Dims for Nuclear Project in U.S. – Bloomberg, By Tara Patel – Jul 30, 2010 Electricite de France SA, Europe’s biggest power generator, reported a 47 percent drop in first- half profit on a charge linked to the development of a nuclear reactor in the U.S. and the outlook for low power prices there.

The utility took a provision of 1.1 billion euros (1.44 billion euros) related to its holding in Constellation Energy Group Inc. due to the “less favorable” outlook for power prices for existing power generators and a planned new nuclear reactor at Calvert Cliffs, the Paris-based company said in an e- mailed statement. EDF said building its Flamanville EPR model in France would cost more and is two years behind schedule.

“The U.S. provision is bad news,” Per Lekander, analyst at UBS in Paris, said by e-mailed. Results were also hurt by “poor availability” of nuclear reactors in France and the U.K., he noted.

EDF has expanded in Europe, China and the U.S., driving up debt, as it braces for a state-led overhaul of the French power market and struggles to raise nuclear output at home. The utility, which is selling its U.K. grid to cut borrowings, is planning to develop EPR reactors in Italy, the U.K. and U.S. even as costs and delays mount for its project in Normandy…….Storms and strikes pushed atomic output to its lowest level in a decade last year.

Strikes at EDF’s reactors in France in the second quarter of last year led to delays in refueling and maintenance, forcing the utility to buy power on the spot market and operate more expensive coal-and gas-fueled plants. The effects of the strikes are still being felt on its reactor maintenance schedule……

July 31, 2010 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, France | antinuclear, EDF, France, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear technology, nuclear wastes, reactors, uranium