AREVA signs three major agreements with partners in Italy

At today’s French-Italian bilateral summit chaired by French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, Anne Lauvergeon, CEO of AREVA, signed three nuclear energy cooperation agreements with its industrial and academic partners.

The agreements were signed in the presence of Jean-Louis Borloo, the French Minister for Ecology, Energy, Sustainable Development and the Sea, Claudio Scajola, the Italian Minister for Economic Development, and Stefania Prestigiacomo, the Italian Minister for the Environment and the Protection of Land and Sea.

They are tangible proof of AREVA’s commitment to forging long-term partnerships with local industry and supporting the nuclear renaissance, not only in Italy but all over the world.

• The first agreement, signed with Giuseppe Zampini, CEO of Ansaldo Energia, will allow AREVA and Ansaldo to work together in Italy on the ENEL-EDF project to build at least four EPR™ reactors, and also on other projects around the world. This AREVA-Ansaldo partnership will notably cover cooperation in engineering, the supply of certain components, erection and commissioning tests.
• The second agreement, signed with Enrico Bonatti, CEO of Techint, paves the way for the two companies to cooperate on future turnkey nuclear projects worldwide, thanks to Techint’s experience and know-how in the design and construction of large industrial facilities.
• Lastly, a training agreement was signed with Giuseppe Forasassi, President of CIRTEN, the inter-university consortium for nuclear research and technology which includes the universities of Rome La Sapienza, Pisa, Padua, Palermo, Polytechnic Milan and Polytechnic Turin. Under the terms of the agreement, AREVA will contribute to the development of new industrial competencies in Italy by providing information material and conference speakers, and allowing students to visit its sites. The group will also offer internships, develop research projects and deliver professional training.

Anne Lauvergeon, CEO of AREVA, said: “These highly complementary agreements illustrate AREVA’s desire to work closely with Italian industry to revive the nuclear industry. With our partners and suppliers, we are well positioned to give our customers the experience and competencies they need to see through their nuclear projects in Italy”.