Framatome Opened a New Fuel Fabrication Facility for Research Reactors and Medical Applications
Earlier this month, Framatome (ENS Corporate Member) inaugurated a new CERCA workshop in Romans-sur-Isère (France).
The new facility, opened on 18th April, is dedicated to the fabrication of fuel for research reactors and targets for medical isotopes.
The Framatome site in Romans-sur-Isère includes the CERCA (Compagnie pour l’Etude et la Réalisation de Combustibles Atomiques) workshops, which are organized around a “uranium zone” where compacted powder is produced to form fuel elements and medical-use targets.
As part of its investment policy and to meet expected growth over the coming years, the site decided to replace the existing uranium zone by a new uranium zone with new equipment, while bringing it up to the latest standards in nuclear safety and security.
We can be proud of this new facility which will ensure the supply of fuel for research reactors and medical targets for our customers for decades to come.
said Lionel Gaiffe, Senior Executive Vice President, Fuel Business Unit at Framatome.
Today, CERCA supplies almost all European research reactors and a significant share of research reactors across the globe.
More than 20,000 fuel elements have been manufactured by CERCA for research reactors across the globe. Furthermore, 75% of the world’s technetium-99m scans are performed using medical targets produced by CERCA.
Read the full Framatome Press Release.
