The EPR sector

The European Pressurised Water Nuclear Reactor (EPR) project stemmed from Franco-German cooperation initiated in 1989, from which Germany withdrew in 1998. From 2001, the newly formed Areva group developed a turnkey EPR sales strategy, opposing EDF, which wanted to be the leader of the “new nuclear” in France and abroad. The rivalries between these two public groups, unarbited at the time, resulted in the precipitous launch of the construction sites of the first two RPRs, in Finland and Flamanville. This insufficient preparation has led to an underestimation of the difficulties and construction costs, which have derived, and to overestimate the ability of the French nuclear sector to cope with them, at the price of financial risks for companies in the sector. Despite a technological choice now proven in China and the improvement made in the management of these major projects, the financial and technical gains expected from the EPR 2 project must be confirmed. The construction of new EPRs in France cannot in any event be considered without clear prior answers on the financing methods and the place of nuclear power generation in the electricity mix of tomorrow.