Contract to manage Iter assembly and installation

Following a year-long international tender process, the Momentum joint venture - comprising Amec Foster Wheeler of the UK, Assystem of France and Kepco Engineering & Construction of South Korea - has been selected as construction management-as-agent contractor for the Iter fusion project.

Following a year-long international tender process, the Momentum joint venture - comprising Amec Foster Wheeler of the UK, Assystem of France and Kepco Engineering & Construction of South Korea - has been selected as construction management-as-agent contractor for the Iter fusion project.

The signing of the contract (Image: ITER Organization)

Under a ten-year, €174 million ($193 million) contract signed yesterday, the Momentum joint venture will manage and coordinate the assembly and installation of more than one million components for the Iter tokamak and associated plant systems. There is an option for a three-year extension to the contract.

The contract was signed by Bernard Bigot, director general of the ITER Organization; Tom Jones, vice-president for business development at Amec Foster Wheeler Nuclear; Hubert Croly-Labourdette, vice-president for strategic operations at Assystem; and Jik-Lae Jo, executive senior vice-president at Kepco E&C.

The scope of services the Momentum joint venture will provide under the contract includes contract management, configuration management, project management, construction preparation, site coordination, works supervision and activities leading up to mechanical completion. The contract does not cover design or fabrication of components, construction of the buildings or building services.

The ITER Organization said it will place a series of work contracts for the assembly of the tokamak machine and the mechanical and electrical installation of the plant systems. In addition, domestic agencies will also have their own contracts for some plant installation works. "The Momentum joint venture will work closely with the ITER Organization to coordinate all work carried out under the different contracts," the ITER Organization said.

Bigot said, "The role of the construction management-as-agent is absolutely central to the success of the Iter project. And since fusion holds so much potential as an environmentally clean and virtually limitless safe source of energy, the stakes of success for the seven ITER members are very high."

He added, "With the expertise represented by the Momentum joint venture, we feel confident that the assembly and installation of the Iter facility will meet its objectives: delivery on time and on budget with the highest standards of quality."

Construction work on Iter began in Cadarache, southern France, in 2010. Once completed, a commissioning phase will follow that will ensure all systems operate together and prepare the machine for the achievement of first plasma. This had originally been planned for November 2020 but earlier this month the council of the ITER Organization endorsed an updated integrated schedule for the project, with first plasma now envisaged in December 2025. Iter's operational phase is expected to last for 20 years.

Researched and written
by World Nuclear News