Under the Euro Medium Term Note Programme ... - Finance - EDF

Risk Factors
The EDF Group is exposed to changes in the conditions for procuring uranium and
conversion and enrichment services
The EDF Group’s operating costs include nuclear fuel purchases.
For its nuclear power plants in France and the United Kingdom, EDF purchases uranium and
conversion and enrichment services through long-term contracts containing hedging
mechanisms that mitigate and smooth price fluctuation over time. Its main supplier is the
AREVA group, but EDF pursues a diversification policy by also buying supplies from other
industrial companies. Prices and availability of uranium and conversion and enrichment
services are subject to fluctuations due to factors that are mainly political and economic,
which the EDF Group cannot control (in particular, increased demand due to worldwide
growth of the nuclear energy sector or shortages associated with, for example, an operating
accident in a uranium mine or an internal or external event leading to political instability in a
uranium producing country).
In the United States, CENG purchases uranium and conversion, enrichment and assembly
services from several suppliers. The current contracts with these suppliers ensure a supply
of fuel and conversion, enrichment and assembly services for several years for the Calvert
Cliffs, Nine Mile Point and Ginna plants.
However, the EDF Group cannot guarantee that its contracts, in France and abroad, will
completely protect it from sudden or significant price increases. The EDF Group cannot
guarantee that when these long-term contracts expire, it will be able to renew them, in
particular at an equivalent price. This could have a negative impact on the EDF Group’s
financial results.
Risks related to the transportation of nuclear fuel
The transportation of new or spent nuclear fuel is a very particular operation that requires
specific and restrictive safety and security measures. These constraints could become more
stringent, generating additional difficulties and costs for the EDF Group. Furthermore,
several factors that are beyond the EDF Group’s control (such as opposition by local
residents or anti-nuclear associations, for example, in the form of manoeuvres to prevent
nuclear material from being shipped) may slow these operations. Operations may also be
interrupted, in particular, in the event of an accident. In such case, the EDF Group may be
required to slow or halt some or all power generation at the relevant sites, due to nondelivery
of new fuel assemblies or the saturation of onsite storage facilities, which may have
a negative impact on the EDF Group’s financial results.
The nuclear power plants operated by the EDF Group may require significant and/or
costly repairs or modifications
The group of nuclear facilities that the EDF Group currently operates in France is highly
standardised. This enables the EDF Group to achieve economies of scale in equipment
purchases and engineering, to apply improvements made to its newest power plants to all
plants and, in the event of a malfunction in a facility, to anticipate the measures to be taken
in other plants. However, such standardisation carries the risk of a malfunction that is
common to several power plants or series of power plants. The EDF Group cannot
guarantee that it will never again be required to make other significant or costly repairs or
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