Name and Location
International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) project, Cadarache, France.

Client
The ITER Organisation, which includes China, the European Union, 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 already in place. The plinths are able to sustain the overall weight of the machine – 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. Their unit weight 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 Organisation 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 2020. Full deuterium-tritium operation is scheduled for March 2027. ITER Organisation and Domestic Agency schedule milestones leading up to these dates are reviewed on a monthly basis and strategies are developed to make up for lost time where necessary.

Latest Developments
A Franco-German consortium has been awarded a contract for the supply of climatic, mechanical and electrical systems to 13 buildings, including the Tokamak complex, at the ITER fusion reactor project.

The contract valued at an estimated €530-million and expected to run for six years, has been awarded to a consortium comprising three GDF-Suez subsidiaries – Cofely Axima, Cofely Endel and Cofely Ineo – and Germany-based engineering company M + W Group. It is the largest contract awarded so far by Fusion for Energy (F4E), the European Union's organisation for coordinating Europe's contribution to the ITER project. Europe is responsible for the delivery of the 39 buildings that the 42 ha ITER site at Cadarache, in southern France, will host.

The contract, covers the design, supply, installation and commissioning of heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) system, the mechanical and electrical equipment for the Tokamak complex. This consists of the Tokamak, diagnostic and tritium buildings, as well as the surrounding buildings.

The HVAC system will be powerful enough to treat the airflow of one-million cubic metres an hour. Instrumentation and control systems, power supplies, interior and exterior lighting, as well as gas and liquid piping, will be installed. Fire detection and protection systems are also included.

The consortium is scheduled to start work at the site in September 2014, with work scheduled to run for about five years. Up to 450 people will be involved in the work at its peak in 2016. There are currently about 250 construction workers at the site, but it is expected that by the end of 2014,the number will reach 2000.

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 Organisation communications, Michel Claessens, tel +33 4 42 17 66 12 or email michel.claessens@iter.org.
Vinci Construction Grands Projets, tel +33 1 47 16 39 00 or fax +33 1 47 51 46 26.
Razel-Bec, tel +331 69 85 69 or fax +33 1 60 19 06 45.
Dodin Campenon Bernard, tel +33 01 49 61 71 00 or fax +33 1 49 61 25 44.
Campenon Bernard Sud-Est, tel +33 4 92 08 45 02.
GTM Sud, tel +33 491 767 507, fax +33 141 915 823 or email gtmsud-gci@vinci-construction.fr.
Chantiers Modernes Sud, tel +33 5 57 89 16 76.