Areva stated that this early acceptance demonstrates progress towards the completion of the first evolutionary power reactor (EPR) to be deployed in the US by 2015.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff has determined that the content of the design certification (DC) application met the acceptance criteria for the safety review to begin.
The formal acceptance and docketing of the US EPR design certification application is linked to the agency’s acceptance of UniStar Nuclear Energy’s combined operating license application for a proposed US EPR at a site adjacent to Constellation Energy’s Calvert Cliffs nuclear power plant in Lusby, Maryland.
Review of Areva’s DC application is expected to conclude in 2010. In early February 2008, UniStar Nuclear Energy announced the engagement of a consortium between Areva and Bechtel Power to begin initial development of the detailed design engineering that will form the basis for future US EPRs in the US.
