AREVA has signed a unique integrated fuel and related services contract with Xcel Energy* in the United States to supply the Monticello nuclear power plant located in the state of Minnesota.
The approximately $500-million contract covers uranium, conversion, enrichment, fuel design and fabrication, and related engineering services. It is the first of a kind awarded by a nuclear utility to a fuel supplier in the country in several decades.
Under the agreement, AREVA will provide six fuel reloads which correponds to a decade of fuel supply, with deliveries beginning in 2015. The contract includes transition of the Monticello plant to use AREVA’s innovative ATRIUMTM 10XM boiling water reactor fuel. This will be the first time that Xcel Energy will use AREVA fuel in its plants.
Luc Oursel, AREVA CEO, said: “AREVA is very pleased with the trust placed in us by Xcel Energy. This new success was made possible thanks to our integrated business model that draws on a broad portfolio of products and services tailored to meet our customers’ needs.”
Dennis Koehl, senior vice president and chief nuclear officer for Xcel Energy, said the utility looks forward to working with AREVA. “This contract represents the start of a productive working relationship between AREVA and Xcel Energy, one we believe will benefit our customers by controlling fuel costs,” Koehl said.
