EDF has presented to its Board of Directors the forecast estimate for the planned construction of six EPR2 reactors, two each at the Penly, Gravelines and Bugey NPP sites. This forecast estimate stands at €72.8bn ($85.3bn) at 2020 values and will be audited in the first quarter of 2026 by the Interministerial Delegation for New Nuclear Power (DINN – Délégation Interministérielle au Nouveau Nucléaire). For the year 2026, the Board of Directors approved a budget of €2.7bn for the programme.
The programme for six new EPR2 reactors, with an option for a further eight EPR2 reactors to follow, was first announced in February 2022 by President Emmanuel Macron as part of a nuclear renaissance in France. This also included life extension for all existing reactors. Construction of the first EPR2 reactor was then expected to start in 2027 with an estimated programme cost of €51.7bn, which was revised to €67.4bn in 2023.
The target for the commissioning of the first reactor at Penly is now 2038 with the others to follow at intervals of 12-18 months. As the Nuclear Policy Council announced in March 2025, this programme will be the subject of state support measures, submitted for approval to the European Commission in November with a view to taking a final investment decision at the end of 2026.
These measures include:
- A subsidised loan to finance at least half of the construction costs;
- A contract for difference for a period of 40 years; and
- Risk sharing between the State and EDF.
Bernard Fontana, Chairman and CEO of the EDF group, said ” The establishment of the forecast estimate for the EPR2 programme reflects the commitment of the EDF teams, its subsidiaries and all of our industrial partners to control deadlines and costs. This dynamic, initiated in particular by the Performance Pact, marks a significant shift in the trajectory of new nuclear power in Europe. The implementation of the EPR2 programme will contribute to energy and industrial sovereignty as well as France’s energy transition for decades to come.”
The EPR2 reactor is a pressurised water reactor project developed by EDF and Framatome. It meets the general safety objectives of the third generation of reactors. Its aim is to incorporate design, construction and commissioning experience feedback from the EPR reactor, as well as operating experience from the nuclear reactors currently in service.
