Paris/Tokyo, June 28, 2016 – Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) and EDF, a leading French utility, have agreed a significant step to forge a strategic and global collaborative relationship in the civil nuclear power fields.
A memorandum of understanding (MOU) was signed at the World Nuclear Exhibition (Paris) by the top representatives of the two companies: Shunichi Miyanaga, President & CEO of MHI, and Jean-Bernard Levy, Chairman & CEO of EDF.
The agreement signed today is a strategic move to strengthen the links between the French and Japanese nuclear power industries, recognizing the strategic interest to combine in certain fields of civil nuclear energy the strengths of EDF and MHI. Specifically, EDF and MHI intend to enhance their strategic cooperation by establishing general objectives and principles related to:
- an updated cooperation framework regarding the ATMEA joint venture, including the involvement of EDF in ATMEA’s business operations,
- with mutual support to be brought for the smooth execution of ATMEA1 projects, in particular in Turkey and Vietnam,
- the potential participation of MHI as a partner in the French nuclear landscape reorganization with the acquisition of a minority equity interest in AREVA NP,
- potential broader range of collaborative ties leveraging the respective technologies and special expertise in the global market.
EDF is the world’s largest operator of nuclear power plants (NPP) benefiting from a broad experience in project development and international cooperation, and has outstanding expertise in the field of the 'nuclear industry' and has been developing nuclear power plants in France and abroad on the basis of the EDF group’s integrated organization, engineering skills and lessons learned. The company has constructed and operates 58 NPPs in France and operates 15 NPPs in the UK. Abroad EDF is also playing a leading role in various new nuclear projects.
MHI is a comprehensive manufacturer of NPPs of the pressurized water reactor (PWR) type, which is the standard configuration adopted in France. Leveraging its fully integrated technologies spanning from design and equipment manufacture to construction, maintenance and inspection, MHI has a solid track record of 24 PWR NPPs completed in Japan, and it has also exported related equipment to 14 countries around the world. MHI has also contributed, via its joint venture ATMEA, to development of the “ATMEA1” reactor.
On concluding the MOU with MHI, EDF’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Jean-
Bernard Levy stated: “I’m particularly delighted for signing this agreement at the occasion of the World Nuclear Exhibition in Paris, with one of the world's leading companies in the nuclear sector. With this MoU paving the way to a global and strategic agreement, EDF and MHI intend to strengthen their own long standing experiences and skills in building and operating safely nuclear generation plants. I am fully confident that this opportunity will lay the foundations for a joint and successful promotion of new nuclear projects in the global market and will also benefit the entire nuclear energy industry in France and in Japan.”
Speaking on behalf of MHI, President Miyanaga stated: “It is a significant step to have EDF’s involvement in ATMEA, allowing the future development and promotion of this competitive technology in the global market. We look forward to cooperating with EDF in the civil nuclear fields comprising the development of the first ATMEA project, ATMEA 1, which will become one of the most advanced nuclear power plants in the world. This agreement also increases cooperative ties between our two countries, and I am confident that this will lead to the further enhancement of nuclear power technologies.”
Going forward, EDF and MHI, taking the new form of a French-Japanese nuclear power industry cooperation, will strive to make further contributions to a sustainable society by offering the market with competitive and safe advanced technologies, contributing to reductions of greenhouse gas emissions.
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