Areva, the world's largest nuclear company by revenue, is expected to be granted US$10.39 billion in contracts to build facilities in China, the Wall Street Journal reported. The deal, which coincides with French President Nicholas Sarkozy's visit to China, involves the construction of two nuclear reactors, fuel to power the reactors for 15 years and uranium to be used in other plants. The contract, which will be signed with China's Guangdong Nuclear Power Holding, will help the chances of survival for the French state-owned
company, after France's government recently considered dismantling and
reorganizing it. The talks between Areva and the French government are
part of a larger debate about how to better serve the world's rapidly growing
nuclear energy needs.