AREVA EPR closer to construction in United States

An AREVA-Bechtel Power Corporation consortium has been awarded a multi-year contract from UniStar Nuclear Energy to complete detailed design engineering for a proposed AREVA U.S. Evolutionary Power Reactor (U.S. EPR) adjacent to Constellation EnergyÂ’s Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant in Lusby, Maryland.

The AREVA-Bechtel teamÂ’s detailed design engineering work is in preparation for construction of the advanced Generation III+ U.S. EPR.

The scope includes full plant specifications and design of plant facilities and buildings. This will provide UniStar Nuclear Energy the information needed to make important decisions about plant-equipment purchases and construction-site preparations, should a final decision be made to build a plant.

“This new multi-year agreement now involves nearly 500 AREVA and Bechtel engineers,” said Tom Christopher, CEO of AREVA Inc. “With the design certification application submittal and UniStar’s combined license (COL) application on track, we are ready to complete the next step on the path of certainty toward commercial operation of the first U.S. EPR.”

The design will benefit from experience gained from four EPRs under construction, including one in Finland, one in France, and two in China. In the United States, UniStar Nuclear Energy and two of its partners, AmerenUE and PPL, are developing plans for U.S. EPRs in Maryland, New York, Missouri and Pennsylvania.

AREVA is reinforcing its readiness for the next wave of plants in the United States by aggressively recruiting hundreds of engineers and technical experts. More than 200 engineers were hired last year. Due to the high demand for more nuclear power, AREVA is continuing to expand its engineering operations in Lynchburg, Virginia, and Charlotte, North Carolina.

The AREVA EPR is an evolutionary 1,600+ MWe net pressurized water reactor design based on well-proven technology and is the first Generation III+ design actually being built. The EPR incorporates significant improvements in safety and economics over previous technologies, providing lower total lifecycle costs and the greatest physical safety for the 21st centuryÂ’s energy scenarios.