Final Bids Received for New Finnish Nuclear Plant

Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland) -- Finnish energy company Fennovoima Oy (Helsinki, Finland) has confirmed that two commercial bids have been accepted for the construction of a new nuclear power plant in the Pyhäjoki region of northern Finland.

The bids for the Hanhikivi 1(HA1) project, which will have a generating capacity of up to 1,700-megawatts (MW), have been received from Areva S.A. (EPA:CEI) (Paris, France) and Toshiba Corporation (TYO:6502) (Tokyo, Japan). The plant will be built on the Hanhikivi peninsula on the coast of Bothnian Bay. Nuclear power currently accounts for approximately 30% of the country's electricity needs.

Both Areva and Toshiba were shortlisted by Fennovoima last July. For additional information see July 11, 2011, article - Areva and Toshiba on Shortlist for Construction of Finnish Nuclear Plant. The project has an estimated value of €4 billion to €6 billion ($5.8 billion to $8.7 billion). Fennovoima said it will choose a winner later year or in early 2013. The plant is expected to be commissioned in 2020.

Areva is proposing its European Pressurised Reactor (EPR) with a generating capacity of around 1,700 MW while Toshiba's is offering its advanced boiling water reactor (ABWR) with a capacity in the region of 1600 MW. In the Areva bid the turbine island will be supplied by either Alstom S.A. (EPA:ALO) (Levallois-Perret, France) or Siemens AG (NYSE:SI) (Munich, Germany) while Toshiba is proposing to supply both the reactor and the turbine island.

Areva is already a player in the Finnish nuclear power sector with its EPR reactor currently being installed at the troubled Olkiluoto 3 nuclear plant which is running up to three years late.

Fennovoima will be responsible for the preparatory infrastructure works including earthworks, excavation and off-shore construction, which will have to be carried out before the HA1 construction begins.

The company said: "The nuclear power plant will be constructed to a greenfield site which means that the first works consist of making a road leading to the site and constructing municipal infrastructure. At the moment, there are various environmental studies being carried out in the Hanhikivi site".

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