Brazil’s Eletronuclear and France’s EDF signed a fresh Memorandum of Understanding valid for five years promoting mutual cooperation in the development of nuclear energy projects.

The Chooz A nuclear reactor, built into a hillside, is the first pressurised water reactor to be decommissioned in France. In its latest review of progress the French nuclear regulator says monitoring of the action plan on site could be improved, but it approved the continued decommissioning activities.

The French nuclear power operator EDF says that the programme of inspections and repairs related to the stress corrosion issue means it has increased the hit it expects to take to its earnings by a further EUR4.5 billion (USD4.7 million) from the EUR14 billion estimated at the start of May.

Bernard Doroszczuk, President of France’s Autorité de Sûreté Nucléaire, told a parliamentary hearing that the "discovery of unexpected stress corrosion" had led to checks of 35 welds so far, a third of the total to be examined by the end of June.

EDF has strengthened operational safety at its Civaux nuclear power plant by addressing the findings of an International Atomic Energy Agency review which took place in 2019, a follow-up mission has concluded.

The International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor fusion project has achieved a major machine assembly milestone, with the first sub-section of the ITER plasma chamber being lifted out of tooling and lowered into the machine well.

Tractebel is to contribute to the development of France's Nuward small modular reactor project. The Belgian engineering firm will conduct studies for the completion of the conceptual design of "the first SMR in the European Union".

The French company EDF last year submitted to Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd its binding techno-commercial offer to build six EPRs at Jaitapur in Maharashtra state and the project was among the bilateral issues backed during talks between President Emmanuel Macron and President Narendra Modi.

France's nuclear safety regulator, the Autorité de Sûreté Nucléaire, has ordered the start of the assembly of the tokamak of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor fusion project to be postponed until a number of safety issues have been addressed.

The state-controlled nuclear giant EDF says it is to raise EUR2.5 billion (USD2.8 billion) to help cover the costs of measures imposed to limit French energy bills and a projected fall in nuclear output.

France will construct six new nuclear power reactors, consider building a further eight and push ahead with the development of small modular reactors, President Emmanuel Macron has said.

GE of the USA has agreed to sell part of GE Steam Power's nuclear power activities, including Arabelle steam turbines, to France's EDF.