Areva has unveiled plans to further increase its heavy component production capacity in Chalon/Saint-Marcel, eastern France.
The group said that over the coming years it will be investing in the plant to bring its annual production to an average equivalent of 2.7 EPRs, up from around 1.7. The plant, which opened in 1973, has produced more than 600 heavy components, including steam generators, pressurizers, reactor vessels and vessel heads.
Investment has already been made to extend the plant’s facilities and support the adaptation of its production equipment.
Areva CEO Anne Lauvergeon said: “Today the plant is a major platform running at full steam, and Areva is spearheading the booming nuclear energy market.”
As a result the company is aslo developing a supply chain in the USA, where several new nuclear plants are to be built in the next decade. It announced in November that it has joined forces with Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding to build a new manufacturing and engineering facility in Virginia to build heavy components for the US EPR.
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