Orano SA is a multinational

nuclear fuel cycle The nuclear fuel cycle, also called nuclear fuel chain, is the progression of nuclear fuel through a series of differing stages. It consists of steps in the ''front end'', which are the preparation of the fuel, steps in the ''service period'' in w ...

company headquartered in

Châtillon, Hauts-de-Seine Châtillon () is a commune in the southwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. The town was formerly named ''Châtillon-sous-Bagneux'', and a relic of this denomination remains in at least one road sign in Van ...

, France. The company is engaged in

uranium mining Uranium mining is the process of extraction of uranium ore from the ground. Over 50 thousand tons of uranium were produced in 2019. Kazakhstan, Canada, and Australia were the top three uranium producers, respectively, and together account f ...

, conversion-enrichment, spent fuel recycling, nuclear logistics, dismantling, and

nuclear cycle The nuclear fuel cycle, also called nuclear fuel chain, is the progression of nuclear fuel through a series of differing stages. It consists of steps in the ''front end'', which are the preparation of the fuel, steps in the ''service period'' in w ...

engineering activities. It was created in 2017 as a result of restructuring and recapitalizing of the nuclear conglomerate Areva. Orano is majority owned by the French state. , Orano is the second largest uranium producer in the world with 9% share in global uranium production.

Etymology

The name Orano is derived from Ouranos, the Greek god, and it refers to uranium. The company's circular yellow logo refers to

yellowcake Yellowcake (also called urania) is a type of uranium concentrate powder obtained from leach solutions, in an intermediate step in the processing of uranium ores. It is a step in the processing of uranium after it has been mined but before f ...

uranium concentrate and to the nuclear fuel cycle.

History

Orano dates back to 1976 when based on the production division of the

French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission The French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission or CEA ( French: Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives), is a French public government-funded research organisation in the areas of energy, defense and securit ...

(CEA), the ''Compagnie générale des matières nucléaires'' (COGEMA, now Orano Cycle) was created. In 2001, COGEMA was merged with

Framatome Framatome () is a French nuclear reactor business. It is owned by Électricité de France (EDF) (75.5%), Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (19.5%), and Assystem (5%). The company first formed in 1958 to license Westinghouse's pressurized water react ...

and to form Areva. In 2016, due to financial difficulties, Areva initiated a restructuring process. As part of this, it created a new fuel cycle company, dubbed as New Co or New Areva. The new company combined Areva Mines,

Areva NC Orano Cycle, formerly COGEMA (''Compagnie générale des matières nucléaires'') and Areva NC, is a French nuclear company. It is the main subsidiary of Orano S.A. It is an industrial group active in all stages of the uranium fuel cycle, inclu ...

, Areva Projects, and Areva Business Support companies. It was created as a wholly owned subsidiary of Areva; however, Areva lost control over the company as the French government invested to recapitalize the company. On 23 January 2018 the company changed its name to Orano. In February 2018, Japan Nuclear Fuel Limited and

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries is a Japanese multinational engineering, electrical equipment and electronics corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. MHI is one of the core companies of the Mitsubishi Group and its automobile division is the predecessor of Mitsubishi Mo ...

took 5% stakes in the company each. In September 2018, the

United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is an independent agency of the United States government tasked with protecting public health and safety related to nuclear energy. Established by the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974, the NRC began operat ...

terminated the license of Orano to construct the Eagle Rock Enrichment Facility, which was to be built in

Bonneville County, Idaho Bonneville County is a county located in the U.S. state of Idaho. As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 123,964, making it the fourth-most populous county in Idaho and the most populous in eastern Idaho. Its county seat and larg ...

. The project had been suspended since December 2011. At the same time Orano opened the Philippe Coste uranium conversion plant in France.

Operations

Orano is engaged in uranium mining, conversion and enrichment, spent fuel recycling, nuclear logistics, dismantling, and nuclear cycle engineering activities. Its main subsidiaries include Orano Cycle, COGEMA and Areva NC, which is active in all stages of the nuclear fuel cycle; Orano Mining, which is active in mining activities, including exploration, extraction, and processing of uranium ore, Orano Med which focuses on the development of therapies to fight cancer; Orano TN, which deals with the transport of nuclear materials; and Orano Projects, which is responsible for the fuel cycle engineering.

Mining

, Orano is the second largest uranium producer in the world with 9% share in global uranium production. Orano operates uranium production sites in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...

, and

Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languagesMcClean Lake uranium mill, Cigar Lake mine, McArthur River mine, and Key Lake uranium mill. In Kazakhstan, Orano has a joint venture with Kazatomprom named Katco. In Niger, Orano operates two mines near in

Arlit Arlit is an industrial town and capital of the Arlit Department of the Agadez Region of northern-central Niger, built between the Sahara Desert and the eastern edge of the Aïr Mountains. It is 200 km south by road from the border with ...

, in northern

Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languages In addition, it owns the mothballed Trekkopje mine in Namibia, together with the Desalination Plant near

Swakopmund Swakopmund (german: Mouth of the Swakop) is a city on the coast of western Namibia, west of the Namibian capital Windhoek via the B2 main road. It is the capital of the Erongo administrative district. The town has 44,725 inhabitants and covers ...

. In Gabon, it owns the site of former Mounana uranium mine where mining activities were carried out between 1961 and 1999.

Processing

The conversion and enrichment operations are carried out in

Malvési The Malvési uranium processing plant, a uranium refinery and conversion facility, is located in the Malvezy industrial area in the city of Narbonne in the south of France. The plant has an average capacity of about 14,000 tU as uranium tetraflu ...

and

Tricastin The Tricastin is a natural and historic region in the southern Rhône valley of southeastern France comprising the southwestern portion of the Drôme department and the northwestern portion of Vaucluse and centered on the modern town of Saint-P ...

sites in France.

Transportation and storage

Nuclear material transport and storage services are provided through Orano TN subsidiary. In 2017 the NUHOMS Matrix advanced used nuclear fuel storage overpack, a high-density system for storing multiple spent fuel rods in canisters, was launched.

Recycling

Orano provides nuclear recycling activities at the

La Hague La Hague () is a commune in the department of Manche, northwestern France. The municipality was established on 1 January 2017 by merger of the former communes of Beaumont-Hague (the seat), Acqueville, Auderville, Biville, Branville-Hague, ...

and Melox sites in France.

Engineering

Orano provides nuclear fuel cycle engineering services through its subsidiary Orano Projects. Its engineering sites are located in Equeurdreville, Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, and Bagnols-sur-Cèze, France. The subsidiary Orano Temis is involved in mechanical engineering and manufactures special equipment, relating to the nuclear fuel cycle, as well as serving external customers in the aerospace and defense sectors. In at least one case Orano has been contracted for feasibility studies.

Nuclear medicine

Orano's subsidiary Orano Med deals with

nuclear medicine Nuclear medicine or nucleology is a medical specialty involving the application of radioactive substances in the diagnosis and treatment of disease. Nuclear imaging, in a sense, is " radiology done inside out" because it records radiation emi ...

, including the development of therapies to fight cancer. It has laboratories in

Bessines-sur-Gartempe Bessines-sur-Gartempe (, literally ''Bessines on Gartempe''; Limousin: ''Becinas'') is a commune in the Haute-Vienne department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in western France. Geography The river Semme forms part of the commune's north-east ...

, France, and

Plano, Texas Plano ( ) is a city in Collin County and Denton County, Texas, United States. It had a population of 285,494 at the 2020 census. It is a principal city of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. History European settlers came to the area near ...

, United States.

References

External links

* {{authority control Areva Companies based in Paris Energy companies established in 2017 Non-renewable resource companies established in 2017 Conglomerate companies of France Manufacturing companies of France Uranium mining companies of France Multinational companies headquartered in France Nuclear fuel companies Nuclear technology companies of France Government-owned companies of France