Name of the Project
International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) project.

Location
Saint-Paul-lez-Durance, France.

Client
The ITER Organization, which includes China, the European Union (EU), India, Japan, Korea, Russia and the US.

Project Description
The ITER project is a large-scale scientific experiment that aims to demonstrate that it is possible to produce commercial energy from fusion. It is based on the tokamak concept of magnetic confinement, in which the plasma is contained in a doughnut-shaped vacuum vessel. The fuel for the reactor will be a mixture of two isotopes of hydrogen, deuterium and tritium, which will be heated to temperatures higher than 150-million degrees centigrade, forming the hot plasma.

The project entails the construction of the Tokamak complex – a 360 000 t building that comprises the tokamak, diagnostic and tritium buildings – in Cadarache, north of Marseille, in southern France. It will have an estimated generating capacity of 500 MW.

The complex will be 80 m high, 120 m long and 80 m wide. Its footprint will be bigger than that of a football stadium.

It will rely on 493 plinths, equipped with antiseismic bearings. The plinths can sustain the overall weight of the reactor – about 23 000 t – almost three times the weight of the Eiffel Tower.

The complex will host 100 heavy nuclear and confinement doors. The major doors will be 4 m high, 4 m long and 35 cm thick. Each door will be about 40 t and they will be remotely operated.

Value
The project is valued at an estimated €13-billion. Members of the ITER Organization will bear the cost of the project through its ten-year construction phase and its 20-year operational phase before decommissioning.

Duration
First plasma is scheduled for November 2025. Full deuterium/tritium operation is scheduled for 2035. The ITER Organization and domestic agencies schedule milestones leading up to these dates and are reviewed monthly, with strategies developed to make up for lost time, where necessary.

Latest Developments
The ITER Council has endorsed an updated schedule for the ITER project through first plasma and to deuterium-tritium operation. 

Under the new schedule, first plasma is now scheduled for 2025 and the start of deuterium-titrium operation is planned for 2035.

A two-day meeting of the ITER council unanimously approved the project’s overall schedule and cost. Each Iter member will now have to seek approval of the project costs through respective government processes.

The council has concluded that: 
• project construction and manufacturing have sustained a rapid pace for the past 18 months, providing tangible evidence of full adherence to commitments. The successful completion to date of all 19 project milestones for 2016, on time and on budget, is a positive indicator of the collective capacity of the ITER Organization and the domestic agencies to continue to deliver on the updated schedule. 
• the staged approach increases confidence and minimises risk by focusing on completing the ITER project in stages and conducting fusion power experiments between each stage. This approach is considered the best way forward in alignment with the priorities and constraints of all ITER members. 
• the continued evidence of effective decision-making, deep understanding and prompt mitigation of risks, and rigorous adherence to standards of quality, safety and schedule commitments provide a strong basis for confidence that the project will maintain its current positive momentum. 

The Council approved new measures to enhance the effectiveness of ITER governance by its oversight bodies, and reappointed the chairs of the ITER Council and its subsidiary committees for a second term of one year. 

Given the rapid pace of ITER project progress, the council has said it will take advantage of the increasing opportunities to engage with the scientific and industrial communities in national and international forums, including at the upcoming ITER Business Forum in Avignon, in March 2017. The council has also encouraged the ITER Organization and domestic agencies to also take advantage of these opportunities. 

Key Contracts and Suppliers
The VFR consortium, comprising Vinci Construction Grands Projets, Razel-Bec, Dodin Campenon Bernard, Campenon Bernard Sud-Est, GTM Sud, Chantiers Modernes Sud and Ferrovial Agroman.

On Budget and on Time?
Not stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
ITER Organization communications, Michel Claessens, tel +33 4 42 17 66 12 or email michel.claessens@iter.org.