AREVA has signed a research and development agreement on nuclear fuel with Swiss nuclear plant operator Gösgen as part of continuing cooperation on the development of commercial nuclear reactor fuels more tolerant to accidents, a statement said.
From 2016, AREVA will supply test fuel rods containing "innovative cladding materials" developed by France’s Commissariat à l’Energie Atomique et aux Energies Alternatives (CEA) in partnership with AREVA and EDF. The materials will be examined in hot cells at the CEA and at the Paul Scherrer Institut in Villigen. The fuel rods could be commercialised by 2020.
AREVA has also been awarded a three-year, multi-million dollar contract to perform outage and maintenance activities for five US nuclear plants beginning in 2016. AREVA will provide integrated outage services for two boiling water and six pressurised water reactors. This contract includes inspection and maintenance services for the reactor vessel and vessel internals as well as the steam generators and reactor coolant pump motor refurbishments.
