French nuclear power giants EDF, AREVA and CEA (the Commissariat a l'Energie Atomique) said they would form a high-powered consulting team that would meet four times a year to discuss the “major challenges facing the French nuclear sector.”
The three companies called the consulting triparite body the French Nuclear Platform (FNP). It would include “key managers” from each entity, including the chairmen of CEA, EDF, and AREVA, who would serve as chairmen of the FNP on a rotating basis.
CEA is a science and engineering research group funded by both the French government and industrial contractors. EDF is primarily a utility firm, while AREVA represents engineering, construction, mining and other aspects of nuclear power. The three announced that their discussions would also focus on nuclear projects in other countries.
“The purpose of the PFN is to improve the joint effectiveness of the three entities,” the companies said in a statement. “In particular, to devise a shared vision of the medium and long-term goals for the sector, which will contribute to the preparation and implementation of decisions taken by the French Presidential Nuclear Policy Council (Conseil de Politique Nucleaire).”
The aim is to establish a working agenda for the PFN by the end of 2016, a statement from the three entities said.
As a starting point, the PFN will focus on “prospects for the French nuclear sector in accordance with France's Energy Transition law, the sector's international strategy established in cooperation with the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Development and other concerned ministries, the review of technological options for the EPR NM, the consolidation of relations with SMEs in the sector in coordination with the French Industry Strategic Committee and the coordination of positions on regulatory changes," especially changes pertaining to safety requirements.
In addition, the consulting team would work together on the issue of the "closed fuel cycle … the optimization of the CIGEO deep waste disposal project, the development of dismantling technologies, as well as the research and development program for fourth generation reactors.”