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

Risk Factors
In the United Kingdom, the current projected operating life of EDF Energy’s power plants
ranges between 30 and 40 years, depending on the power plant. However, in light of the
safety rules applicable in the United Kingdom, the EDF Group cannot guarantee that EDF
Energy will obtain the necessary authorisations at the relevant times to operate its existing
nuclear power plants until the end of their currently projected operating life, or that these
authorisations will not be obtained subject to conditions that entail significant expenditures or
investments for the EDF Group. Nonetheless, EDF Energy assumes the currently projected
operating lives for the purpose of calculating the accounting treatment (depreciation,
provisions, etc.) associated with the operating life of its nuclear plants in the United Kingdom.
In the United States, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (“NRC”) granted an operating life
of 60 years 10 to all CENG nuclear plants (which were commissioned between 1970 and
1988. CENG is the joint venture created by EDF and Constellation Energy Group (CEG), to
which were transferred the nuclear assets previously held by CEG.
However, the EDF Group cannot guarantee that these power plants will be actually operated
for such period, particularly in the event of an incident affecting the safety or availability of
the facilities.
If the safety authorities require the closure of certain power plants before the end of their
accounting operating lives, the EDF Group would be required to accelerate replacement of
the corresponding generation capacity and to make additional investments or electricity
purchases on the market. It would also be necessary to review the depreciation plan and
reassess the residual operating life of the relevant plants. This may have a significant
adverse impact on the EDF Group’s financial results and financial position.
The EDF Group may not obtain the authorisations necessary to extend the operating
life of its power plants beyond the currently projected durations
To postpone construction of replacement units and the investments related thereto, and to
continue to receive cash flows from its existing plants, the EDF Group aims to extend the
operating life of its nuclear plants in France beyond 40 years. As of 2009, EDF provided the
ASN with the safety improvements it proposed in order to operate its plants beyond 40 years.
In the course of 2012, the ASN will have a panel of experts it appoints review the proposed
safety improvements for operation beyond 40 years. This review will take account of the
technical instructions that the ASN is scheduled to publish in the first half of 2012, following
its review of the additional safety inspections.
In the united Kingdom, EDF Energy is also attempting to extend the operating life of its
nuclear plants beyond the initial period, and has already announced and taken into account
the extension of the operating life of certain power plants.
The EDF Group cannot guarantee that it will obtain such extensions, especially in the current
context. Furthermore, these extensions may be obtained under certain conditions, the
financial impact of which, particularly in terms of investment, might affect the EDF Group’s
strategy to extend the operating life of its plants or the EDF Group’s capacity to pursue its
global investment strategy.
10 Except for Nine Mile Point 2, which has an operating life of 58 years.
-54 -