Framatome expresses interest to expand cooperation with China in civil nuclear energy

Framatome, an international leader in nuclear energy, participated in the second annual China International Import Expo (CIIE), held November 5, 2019, in Shanghai. On the opening day, Bernard Fontana, CEO of Framatome, expressed his wish to deepen the company’s cooperation with China in civil nuclear energy and on major international challenges such as protecting the environment and increasing the use of low-carbon energy sources.

Fontana joined the event’s French presidential delegation, led by President Emmanuel Macron who was the guest of honor for the second edition of the expo.

“The first China International Import Expo demonstrated China’s strong commitment to expand its economy and collaborate internationally,” said Fontana. “Therefore, the scale of our participation this year is larger and the standards are higher. Over the past six decades, Framatome's teams have acquired unparalleled experience on more than 380 reactors worldwide. We are optimistic about the future of the Chinese market and are committed to deepening our cooperation.”

After listening to President Xi JinPing’s and Macron’s speeches at the opening ceremony, Fontana expressed optimism about the future of Sino-French cooperation.

“The two heads of state repeatedly emphasized the importance of Sino-French cooperation on civilian nuclear energy,” said Fontana. “In fact, cooperation between our two countries has a long history of fruitful results. Framatome is proud to have witnessed and been part of those efforts.”

China is home to several important milestones for Sino-French civilian nuclear energy cooperation. On December 13, 2018, and September 7, 2019, the world's first and second EPR units in Taishan, Guangdong province, were declared to be in commercial operation. The EPR is a third-generation pressurized water reactor that EDF and Framatome jointly developed.

On the eve of the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, Framatome signed the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) Tokamak Assembly Contract 1 (TAC1) with four Chinese entities.