Russia and Japan form nuclear alliance

[FarCenter]

27/ 03/ 2008

MOSCOW. (RIA Novosti commentator Tatyana Sinitsyna) - Paris is in shock: nuclear giants Atomenergoprom and Toshiba have decided to form an alliance in civilian nuclear power operations, including power plant construction and fuel production.

The two companies signed a framework agreement last week, under which the Russian company will enrich uranium produced in Kazakhstan, while Toshiba will produce nuclear fuel and undertake the designing and engineering of nuclear power plants. The firms may establish a strategic partnership in the future, Toshiba said. By securing a stable supply of nuclear fuel through the alliance with Atomenergoprom, Toshiba hopes to sharpen its competitive edge. Experts predict that the alliance will become the world's leader in the nuclear sector.

Previously, the market was divided between four players: the French-German alliance of Areva and Siemens, two American-Japanese groups, Toshiba-Westinghouse and GE-Hitachi, and Russia's Atomenergoprom. The Russian-Japanese alliance will cut the number of players to three. Moreover, Toshiba now owns a 70% stake in Westinghouse.

The French newspaper Les Echos described the alliance as "the main event in the nuclear production cycle." As a nuclear power and leading player on the global market of nuclear power engineering, France is worried that the Russian-Japanese tie-up could become a major rival of the French Areva. The newspaper reports that the French government intends to merge Areva and Alstom into a nuclear power plant building super-company.

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More at http://en.rian.ru/analysis/20080327/102358400.html

[realisticphish]

1. The Nuclear Alliance

sounds like a marvel comic

[HysteryDiagnosis]

2. Not to worry, the Fantastic Four will straighten this out.... who

would have thunk that Russia would rise again so to speak??

Fantastic Four: Dick Cheney, GWB, Condoleeza Rice, Ralph Nader.