Agreement constitutes biggest enrichment deal in AREVA's history
– By Stephen Heiser –
AREVA and EDF have signed a long-term uranium enrichment contract worth more than €5 Billion ($6.5 Billion USD), making it the biggest AREVA has ever signed for this activity.
The deal secures EDF's long-term enrichment services, which will be provided by AREVA's future Georges Besse II centrifugation enrichment plant. Located on the Tricastin site in the south of France, GBII has been under construction since September 2006, and at around €3 Billion ($3.9 Billion USD)represents one of France's biggest industrial investments of the decade.
AREVA and EDF's strategic enrichment partnership goes back to their first ever agreement, signed in 1975. Since it first started supplying EDF with enriched uranium in 1979, AREVA has helped the utility meet a significant portion of its needs.
Commenting on the deal, François-Xavier Rouxel, Executive VP of AREVA's Enrichment business unit said: "EDF's trust demonstrates the long-term attractiveness of AREVA's enrichment services", adding that "This contract adds to Georges Besse II's burgeoning order book".