MOX for Peace Program : Plutonium arrives at COGEMA Cadarache

Press release

October 08, 2004

140 kilograms of weapons-grade plutonium from the United States arrived at the COGEMA Cadarache plant today at 2.30 am. The plutonium was transported by road under optimum safety conditions.


The plutonium will be used to fabricate fuel rods over a four-month period at the COGEMA Cadarache plant.  Final assembly will be carried out at the MELOX plant and the fuel will be delivered to the United States in early 2005.


This operation falls within the scope of the non-proliferation program put in place by the United States and the Russian Federation which aims to eliminate surplus stocks of weapons-grade plutonium by using it to fabricate fuel for civil nuclear power plants. Four MOX (mixed uranium and plutonium oxide) fuel assemblies have to be fabricated in France to validate the performance of the fuel in the US reactors.



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