French nuclear power company Areva and U.S.-based nuclear and hazardous waste management company Kurion said Thursday they would create an alliance for nuclear waste decommissioning and remediation services that would specifically serve the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) complex.
The first task for the partnership, the companies said, would be to create a joint venture to clean up and eventually close down the DOE’s Hanford nuclear site in Washington State. After that, the partnership anticipates the growth of the decommissioning business in the United States.
This new alliance will join Areva’s engineering and operational expertise in the nuclear energy sector with Kurion’s proprietary technologies and expertise in the access, separation and stabilization of nuclear waste. The goal of this partnership is to provide innovative technology solutions for nuclear waste, particularly to meet the needs of nuclear facilities undergoing decommissioning and cleanup, an expanding market in the United States.
“Through this partnership, we will strengthen our offering in the growing U.S. decommissioning market,” said Gary Mignogna, chief executive officer of Areva Inc. in a statement.
“The unique combination of our companies’ expertise, knowledge and technology will create innovative and economical solutions to best meet our customers’ needs.”
“[With] Kurion’s proprietary technologies in robotics, waste separation and stabilization, a joint Areva-Kurion team will be capable of solving nearly any nuclear waste management challenge,” said Jacques Besnainou, Kurion president.