Harveylives
11-26-2003, 04:31 PM
Science - Reuters
EU Suggests French Site for Fusion Project
Wed Nov 26,10:25 AM ET Add Science - Reuters to My Yahoo!
By David Milliken
BRUSSELS, Belgium (Reuters) - The European Union (news - web sites) chose a French site Wednesday as its candidate for the world's biggest experimental nuclear fusion reactor.
It will now compete with Canada and Japan to host the $12 billion International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor project, which includes the three rivals as well as the United States, China, Russia and South Korea (news - web sites).
The ITER aims to create the world's first sustained nuclear fusion reaction, lasting several minutes, in a bid to harness the source of the sun's power and tame it for the benefit of humanity in a cleaner process than today's nuclear fission.
EU ministers meeting in Brussels chose Cadarache, near the southern city of Marseille, over a rival Spanish site.
"Europe will propose Cadarache as the site for ITER," Italian Education Minister Letizia Moratti told reporters after chairing the meeting of ministers responsible.
Spanish Science Minister Juan Costa said he had withdrawn the rival bid for a site in eastern Spain to present a united European front when the project's participants meet to discuss a final choice on Dec. 4.
"We have taken the best possible decision ... to make sure the ITER project becomes reality," he said.
The 30-year project is billed as the future of renewable energy. President Bush (news - web sites) has said he hoped to see fusion commercially available by the middle of the century.
Fusion involves sticking atoms together, unlike the splitting of an atom that is at the heart of nuclear fission, the process used in today's atomic power plants and weapons.
It frees energy when two hydrogen atoms are smashed together to form a heavier atom of helium, and does not create much nuclear waste or risk reactor meltdown as fission does.
Fusion power has been touted as a solution to the world's energy problems, as it is low in pollution and has a virtually limitless supply of fuel in the form of sea water.
It has been achieved before, but not in a commercially viable way -- as it used up more energy than was generated.
FRANCO-SPANISH COMPROMISE
Under Wednesday's compromise, Spain will host the project's administrative offices if the reactor is built in France, and appoint one of two senior European officials in charge of it.
"France and Spain will jointly assume the responsibility for taking this forward at the international level," Costa said.
Spain had seemed set to put up a strong fight for its rival site in Catalonia when it offered an extra 900 million euros last week to support it.
An earlier independent scientific report had concluded France's site had some technical support advantages while Spain's project would be cheaper.
EU Research Commissioner Philippe Busquin said continued disagreement about the site would have weakened Europe's chances of hosting the reactor.
"This agreement shows there is a strong European will to get it sited in Europe," he said. (Additional reporting by Jean-Francois Rosnoblet in Marseille)
EU Suggests French Site for Fusion Project
Wed Nov 26,10:25 AM ET Add Science - Reuters to My Yahoo!
By David Milliken
BRUSSELS, Belgium (Reuters) - The European Union (news - web sites) chose a French site Wednesday as its candidate for the world's biggest experimental nuclear fusion reactor.
It will now compete with Canada and Japan to host the $12 billion International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor project, which includes the three rivals as well as the United States, China, Russia and South Korea (news - web sites).
The ITER aims to create the world's first sustained nuclear fusion reaction, lasting several minutes, in a bid to harness the source of the sun's power and tame it for the benefit of humanity in a cleaner process than today's nuclear fission.
EU ministers meeting in Brussels chose Cadarache, near the southern city of Marseille, over a rival Spanish site.
"Europe will propose Cadarache as the site for ITER," Italian Education Minister Letizia Moratti told reporters after chairing the meeting of ministers responsible.
Spanish Science Minister Juan Costa said he had withdrawn the rival bid for a site in eastern Spain to present a united European front when the project's participants meet to discuss a final choice on Dec. 4.
"We have taken the best possible decision ... to make sure the ITER project becomes reality," he said.
The 30-year project is billed as the future of renewable energy. President Bush (news - web sites) has said he hoped to see fusion commercially available by the middle of the century.
Fusion involves sticking atoms together, unlike the splitting of an atom that is at the heart of nuclear fission, the process used in today's atomic power plants and weapons.
It frees energy when two hydrogen atoms are smashed together to form a heavier atom of helium, and does not create much nuclear waste or risk reactor meltdown as fission does.
Fusion power has been touted as a solution to the world's energy problems, as it is low in pollution and has a virtually limitless supply of fuel in the form of sea water.
It has been achieved before, but not in a commercially viable way -- as it used up more energy than was generated.
FRANCO-SPANISH COMPROMISE
Under Wednesday's compromise, Spain will host the project's administrative offices if the reactor is built in France, and appoint one of two senior European officials in charge of it.
"France and Spain will jointly assume the responsibility for taking this forward at the international level," Costa said.
Spain had seemed set to put up a strong fight for its rival site in Catalonia when it offered an extra 900 million euros last week to support it.
An earlier independent scientific report had concluded France's site had some technical support advantages while Spain's project would be cheaper.
EU Research Commissioner Philippe Busquin said continued disagreement about the site would have weakened Europe's chances of hosting the reactor.
"This agreement shows there is a strong European will to get it sited in Europe," he said. (Additional reporting by Jean-Francois Rosnoblet in Marseille)