France's ITER Energy Research Project Welcomes International Scientists and Suppliers (Y067)

ITER CADARACHE (PROVENCE, ALPS, COTE D'AZUR): OPEN TENDERS TO SCIENTISTS AND SUPPLIERS FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD

[USPRwire, Tue Aug 05 2008] France has had a high level of expertise in the global civil nuclear energy sector for more than 50 years: from natural uranium graphite gas reactors to new generation EPR reactors, and high pressure water reactors of which it has the largest installed plant in the world. France is therefore the natural choice to host at Cadarache, the major center for energy research for the French atomic energy commission (“Commissariat français à l’énergie atomique”), the ITER project constructing an experimental nuclear fusion reactor using hydrogen isotopes.

The site was selected in 2005 by the international partners of the ITER project (India, China, South Korea, Japan, Russia, the United States and the European Union). It will take 10 years to build the project and a further 20 years of scientific experiments to prove that fusion can become a new reliable source of energy.

Total investment is estimated at EUR 10 billion (16 billion USD) (estimated in 2000), approximately half of which will be used in the first 10 years. ITER will have a major impact on the national and regional economies (www.iter.org). To date, an estimated EUR 210 million (333 million USD) has been allocated to companies by means of a tender process open to local partners and industrial and service companies from all over the world. The national agencies of the partners are currently issuing calls for tender concerning the construction phase of the site and equipment on the Internet at www.iterentreprises.com, a platform that can also be used to find partners.

It is expected that within two years, the first direct contractors and industrial partnerships should be in place, which should lead to an influx of projects in the following fields: service or sub-contracting companies specializing in nuclear power that would need to be located at Cadarache to serve local clients; representative offices that would need to be set up in close proximity to the ITER project management site; maintenance offices close to the site to ensure servicing and maintenance of the various reactor components (during the construction phase and operations); and assembly plants (particularly for large components requiring several companies to work together). Finally, several major foreign groups intend to carry out feasibility studies to determine the cost of producing components locally.

The ITER Industrial Committee (www.mioga.minefi.gouv.fr/ITER/public/SITE/) is available to provide information to companies regarding partnerships. International organization ITER and European agency Fusion for Energy are responsible for the conception, construction and research center installation. The ITER Mission is in charge of regional infrastructure and finally the ITER France Agency ensures interaction between the different bodies involved in the construction of the project. Several innovative clusters are collaborating with the ITER project: CapEnergies (Provence, Alps, Côte d’Azur (PACA)); Trimatec PACA, Languedoc-Roussillon, Rhône-Alps and Nuclear Burgundy.

“The French government actively supports research and has introduced the best R&D tax credit system in Europe, which reimburses 50% of R&D costs in the first year. Its budget of over EUR 1.4 billion (2.2 billion USD) in 2006 was increased to approximately EUR 2 billion (3.2 billion USD) in 2008, following the reform introduced in 2007,” says Philippe Favre, President of Invest in France Agency.

Invest in France Agency (IFA) promotes and facilitates international investment in France. The IFA network operates worldwide. IFA works in partnership with regional development agencies to offer international investors business opportunities and customized services all over France. For more information, please visit www.investinfrance.org .

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