France gets ready to build fourth generation nuclear reactor
French President Jacques Chirac has reaffirmed his country's goal of building a fourth generation nuclear reactor by 2020. His comments were made during a recent meeting of government ministers, at which a research plan for building the reactor was presented. The President said that it was important to strengthen the country's nuclear energy sector, particularly given the current increases in oil and gas prices, and in view of the threat of global warming. 'A fourth generation reactor would create even more energy, even less waste and be even safer,' he said. Mr Chirac was speaking at a meeting of government ministers on 20 December. Research into materials, fuel, operation, in-service inspection and maintenance, as well as facilities for reprocessing spent fuel from the proposed reactor, are among the aspects to be explored in the initial stages of the project. By 2012, the French government says it will be ready to decide on the type of technology to be used in the reactor's construction. The decision to build the reactor was first announced by the French President at the beginning of 2006. The aim of the reactor would be to meet France's medium-term energy needs. It is also foreseen to compliment other energy projects in which France is playing a leading role. Among them is the third-generation European Pressurized Water Reactor (EPR), which is intended to replace the 58 reactors of France's 19 atomic power plants. It will also contribute to ITER, an international experimental fusion reactor, which aims to harness the energy of the sun by the end of the century. The project preparations are likely to be helped along by France's membership in the Generation IV International Forum (GIF), a platform for international research cooperation established in January 2000 at the initiative of the US Department of Energy. The forum will investigate innovative nuclear energy system concepts for meeting future energy challenges. Fourth generation nuclear energy systems represent an array of nuclear reactor technologies that could be deployed by 2030. While the first and second generations of reactors met the need for intensive energy production at low costs and acceptable levels of safety, the third generation was conceived after the Three Mile Island and Chernobyl accidents, and focused on an even higher level of safety. Although these existing designs provide a reliable supply of electricity in many markets, proponents of the fourth generation say that its deployment will result in significant improvements in economics, safety, reliability and sustainability. France is the biggest producer of nuclear power in Europe, having constructed dozens of reactors since the 1970s oil crises. Some 78% of the country's electricity is supplied by nuclear power. The country is also one of the world's biggest net exporters of electricity, and is also a major exporter of nuclear technology.
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