The French general delegation for armaments (DGA) has awarded the Barracuda contract for six new generation nuclear submarines to the consortium DCN / Areva TA.

Areva TA is to supply nuclear boilers for naval propulsion and has designed a nuclear reactor which offers greater autonomy with regard to operation and maintenance. Commissioning of the first nuclear boiler is scheduled for 2014.

The contract won by Areva represents around 15% of the total value of the programme, which is estimated at €8 billion over a twenty-year period.