EDF and AREVA reinforce their collaboration to strengthen the Polish nuclear supply chain

Within the framework of the nuclear program launched by Poland’s government in 2009, AREVA and EDF have already organized a series of Supplier Days – three held by AREVA in Warsaw, Opole and Wroclaw, and an AREVA-EDF co-event in Gdansk – as part of their localization strategy in support of their nuclear new-build projects in Poland and beyond. This support has reached a new level today, with the signature of a tripartite Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Energoprojekt, a Polish energy engineering company.

The purpose of this MoU is to combine the three companies’ respective engineering and industrial skills for development of Poland’s first nuclear power program. Energoprojekt, AREVA and EDF believe their collaboration will contribute to establish a high level of safety for the project and bring significant added value to the Polish nuclear program.

The cooperation will focus mainly on:
· delivering knowledge and expertise in engineering and construction to the Polish nuclear program,
· involving Polish suppliers and promoting skills development to build a robust Polish supply chain for the construction and operation of nuclear power plants.

Sharing a similar approach to localization, AREVA and EDF have already confirmed that a significant part of the new power station works would be open to Polish suppliers. The anticipated supply chain market would represent at least 50% of the total value of the investment, and possibly even more, depending on the level of Polish companies’ nuclear qualification.

Dominique Lagarde, Director of EDF’s Nuclear Engineering Division, said: "Associating the skills and knowledge of companies who know the local context to the expertise and know-how of experienced nuclear companies is a condition for the success of the Polish nuclear program, in particular to ensure the quality and industrial safety for future operations. EDF and AREVA are pleased to make their cooperation with local Polish suppliers concrete through this MoU with EnergoProjekt.”

Tarik Choho, AREVA Vice Commercial Chief Officer, declared: "Today’s event and the signature of this agreement with Energoprojekt will help to strengthen the supply chain set up by AREVA and EDF, and enable us to make the best possible offer for the construction and operation of nuclear reactors in Poland. At the Olkiluoto 3 construction site in Finland, 25 Polish companies are already involved in the project. This constitutes a solid base on which to build to realize a significant part of the future reactor project work in Poland. We are happy to welcome Energoprojekt as one of our partners, a recognized expert in electric power installation engineering and construction".

Andrzej Patrycy, President of Energoprojekt’s Management Board and Managing Director, said: “We are pleased that the AREVA-EDF nuclear consortium appreciates the capabilities and professionalism of Energoprojekt. We are convinced that our experience will benefit to our French partners during the construction of the first Polish nuclear power plant. Likewise, participating in this project will be a great opportunity for us to improve our skills through collaboration with these two industry leaders”.