The Areva share jumped 31% Thursday after the announcement of a capital increase of 5 billion. Two major obstacles remain: the green light from Brussels and the Finnish contract. France must therefore convince Brussels that by investing billions of euros in Areva, it acts “prudent investor” and not as a last resort to avoid bankruptcy of the public company. The group must demonstrate that its “business plan” is promising, while the uranium market or enrichment remains depressed. The management of OL3 folder, the name of the Areva EPR reactor built in Finland on behalf of TVO, remains the biggest thorn: EDF one will make a firm offer on Areva NP that “once the Total device EDF immunization against the costs and risks of the OL3 project “finalized. Today, “there are four or five solutions on the table, each with variants, so the range is very wide,” says a source close to the matter.
Les Echos 29th Jan 2016 read more »