Edison keen to build new reactors in Italy

[Bloomberg, Thomson Financial, 18 March] Umberto Quadrino, CEO of Italian utility Edison, said that it would take at least ten years to construct a nuclear power plant in Italy if the country ends its moratorium on nuclear energy. Speaking to La Stampa newspaper, he said: "If we start discussing seriously immediately, we can have the first operating plant in 2019." He noted that the reintroduction of nuclear energy in Italy would require a "strong political leadership and a bipartisan consensus." Quadrino also told La Repubblica newspaper that Edison wants to construct as many as ten nuclear power plants at a cost of €40 billion ($63 billion). He said that Edison would not seek state aid to construct new plants as it would raise funds from investors. A referendum held in 1987 banned the use of nuclear energy in Italy.

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