Areva
Introduction
The French company Areva has had a long-standing interest in exporting nuclear power facilities to Indoneisa, although in recent years appeared to be less favoured than either Mitubishi Heavy Industry or KEPCO/KHNP. The announcement of the sale of six Areva reactors to india in early 2009 may signal some change in its Indonesian prospects.
Government sources
Company sources
Analysis
Areva: T&D Unit Gets EUR120 Mln Contract In Indonesia, Alice Dore, Dow Jones, Wall Street Journal, 1 June 2009
French state-controlled nuclear group Areva SA (CEI.FR) said Wednesday that its Transmission and Distribution unit, along with Indonesian electrical equipment contractor PT Multifabrindo Gemilang, has won a EUR120 million contract from Indonesian state-owned electricity company PT.PLN Persero. Areva said that through this deal, it will “modernize the Indonesian network in line with the 10 GW Generation program launched in 2006” to increase access to electricity for Indonesians. The contract includes “delivery of several high voltage substations as well as underground electrical cables, in order to distribute power to the main Java cities, Jakarta, Bandung and Surabaya,” Areva said.
France’s Areva, India Sign Nuclear Reactor Deal, CBC News, 4 February 2009
French nuclear giant Areva has signed a preliminary deal to provide India with up to six new-generation nuclear reactors, expanding the list of countries that are adopting the technology in response to skyrocketing energy demand.
rench Areva to invest $15m for business expansion in Indonesia, Jakarta Post, 29 March 2008
French electrical components supplier Areva plans to spend 10 million euros (US$15.7 million) over the next couple of years on expanding its business in Indonesia. Aside from state power firm Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN), Areva’s principal customers include U.S. Freeport, local steel producer Krakatau Steel, U.S. Chevron and French Total. The firm plans to involve itself as a supplier of transmission and distribution devices in the 10,000MW power project.
Areva sales director for Indonesia Yann Reynaud said more investment was needed to help the company maintain its export activities, which currently account for 55 percent of the firm’s total sales. Reynaud said it was important for the company to raise production capacity in Indonesia to meet export demand from Australia, South Africa and Senegal. In addition to having its own manufacturing units, the company also runs with PLN a joint venture firm named Unindo, which is 65 percent controlled by Areva and 35 percent by PLN. Reynaud estimated the company’s Indonesia assets in the region of 150 million euros, comprising two manufacturing units and three regional sales offices. Areva said it supplied 80 percent of Indonesia’s electricity components.
Areva and Mitsubishi create Atmea joint venture. World Nuclear News, 3 September 2007
Areva and Mitsubishi have created the Atmea joint venture to develop, market, license and sell an 1100 MWe pressurized water reactor (PWR), which will combine technologies of both companies. The reactor would be marketed at emerging countries wishing to begin nuclear power programs, as well as established markets such as the USA and Europe. A statement said Atmea 1 would “offer operators solid Generaion-III safety features.”
Nuclear reactors for sale: France vies for big stake in industry revival, Carole Landry, Agence France Press, 14 October 2007.
In two months, workers in Flamanville will pour the first concrete for the third-generation EPR, or European Pressurized Reactor, touted as the safest and cleanest addition to France’s network of 58 nuclear reactors. With more than 80 percent of its electricity generated by nuclear plants, France sees itself as a model for successfully putting the atom at work toward producing carbon-free and relatively cheap power. President Nicolas Sarkozy, who has described nuclear power as the “energy of the future”, stood up at the United Nations last month and delivered what was tantamount to a sales pitch for French nuclear technology. “France is willing to help any country which wants to acquire civilian nuclear power. An energy source for the future should not be the preserve of western countries and out of reach of eastern countries,” Sarkozy declared.
Vietnam, along with Morocco, Indonesia, Chile, Argentina and the United Arab Emirates are on the list of prospective new buyers of French-designed nuclear reactors, said Arthur de Montalembert, vice president for international affairs and marketing at Areva. It is building a third-generation EPR in Finland, upgrading a German-designed reactor in Brazil and is actively seeking a stake in reviving Britain’s outdated nuclear infrastructure in a venture with EDF.
“The EPR could very well be the next Concorde,” he said of the technology, comparing it to the supersonic jet that was mothballed in 2003 after 34 years in the skies. A disastrous crash and high-maintenance costs brought the Concorde to its end.
See also
Project coordinator: Richard Tanter
Additional research: Arabella Imhoff
Updated: 3 July 2009