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00:00 It's been a long wait for France's electric utility, its nuclear sector and the government.
00:05 Their hopes finally realized late Tuesday as the country's nuclear safety watchdog issued
00:11 this statement.
00:12 The Nuclear Safety Agency has authorized the entry into service of the EPR reactor at Flamanville.
00:18 This authorization allows EDF to load the nuclear fuel into the reactor and to proceed
00:22 with startup tests and commercial operation of the reactor.
00:26 Launched in 2007 under President Nicolas Sarkozy, the project has seen a litany of setbacks
00:32 - cracks in its concrete slabs, faulty welding, anomalies in the steel of the reactor vessel
00:38 itself.
00:39 Construction took 12 years longer than planned, the budget too far beyond initial projections.
00:45 Including financing costs, France's accounting authority puts the final bill at 19 billion
00:50 euros instead of the 3.3 billion first estimated.
00:54 The EPR is a pressurized system designed for more efficiency and safety than older reactors.
01:01 Two have entered service in China and one in Finland with another under construction
01:05 at Hinkley Point in the UK.
01:07 All have faced significant service delays.
01:10 French electric utility EDF and the government are counting on Flamanville's inauguration
01:15 to kickstart their plan for more than a dozen new EPRs around the country - a major pillar
01:20 of Paris' plans to cut carbon emissions.
01:22 "We must build a Europe based on the free circulation of decarbonized electricity, whether
01:28 via renewables or nuclear, it doesn't matter."
01:31 After testing, the new reactor should be connected to the grid within a few months.
01:36 It's expected to produce 1.6 gigawatts per hour by year-end, making it the most powerful
01:41 reactor in the country.