Finnish power utility Teollisuuden Voima Oyj (TVO) said on 13 September that it had filed an appeal with the European Commission over France’s restructuring of its nuclear industry, arguing that it could result in Areva being unable to meet its liabilities. Areva, along with Siemens, is supplier of the reactor to unit 3 of the Olkiluoto NPP in Finland which is now over budget and nine years behind schedule. TVO and Areva are pursuing legal claims and counter-claims at the International Chamber of Commerce over delays and cost overruns on at the project. TVO is claiming €2.6bn from supplier consortium Areva and Siemens, while Areva and Siemens have a counter-claim of $3.6bn. The partial awards made so far have favoured TVO.
Under France’s recovery plan, Areva (86.5% state-owned) will sell its nuclear reactor business to power utility EDF. The government also has undertaken to make a €4.5bn capital injection into Areva, which TVO has said is not enough. “The plan does not ensure that Areva is able to meet all current and future liabilities during the last phases of Olkiluoto 3 project completion and until the end of the guarantee period,” said TVO spokeswoman Anna Lehtiranta. She said the appeal partly seeks to ensure that Areva has enough money in case it loses its case over plant delays. According to Reuters, Areva declined to comment on the appeal but said the reactor remains on track to start production in December 2018. The cost of Olkiluoto 3, initially estimated at €3.2bn in 2012 has since risen to €8.5bn.
