Marcoule Nuclear Site


Marcoule Nuclear Site is a nuclear facility in the Chusclan and Codolet communes, near Bagnols-sur-Cèze in the Gard department of France, which is in the tourist, wine and agricultural Côtes-du-Rhône region. The plant is around 25 km north west of Avignon, on the banks of the Rhone.
Operational since 1956, Marcoule is a gigantic site run by the atomic energy organization Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique and Areva NC and is known as CEA VALRHO Marcoule. The first industrial and military plutonium experiments took place in Marcoule. Diversification of the site was started in the 1970s with the creation of the Phénix prototype fast breeder reactor, which was operational until 2009, and is nowadays an important site for decommissioning nuclear facilities activities.
the Phénix reactor was planned to be succeeded by the sodium-cooled fast reactor ASTRID, foreseen to become operational in the 2030s. However in 2019 the ASTRID project was closed.
Since 1995, the MELOX factory has been producing MOX from a mix of uranium and plutonium oxides. MOX is used to recycle plutonium from nuclear fuel; this plutonium comes from the COGEMA La Hague site.
The ATelier Alpha et Laboratoires pour ANalyses, Transuraniens et Etudes de retraitement is a CEA laboratory investigating the issues of nuclear reprocessing of nuclear fuel and of radioactive waste.

Reactors

The site housed a number of the first generation French UNGG reactors, all of which have been shut down. Since then, it has also operated two heavy water reactors to produce tritium. Cooling for all of the plants comes from the Rhône river.
UnitTypeNet powerTotal powerConstruction startConstruction finishFull operationShut down
Marcoule G1UNGG2 MW195507.01.1956 15.10.1968
Marcoule G2UNGG39 MW43 MW01.03.195522.04.195922.04.195902.02.1980
Marcoule G3UNGG40 MW43 MW01.03.195604.04.196004.04.196020.06.1984
Celestin 1Tritium breeder 19672009
Celestin 2Tritium breeder 19682009
PhénixFast breeder130 MW142 MW01.03.1968 14.07.197401.02.2010

2011 explosion

On 12 September 2011, there was an explosion in an oven used to melt metallic waste of a "weak and very weak" level of radioactivity, killing one person, and injuring four. The explosion happened in the Centraco centre, used by Socodei, a sister company of Électricité de France. A safety cordon was set up around the plant by fire officers because of the risk of leakage.

CEA VALRHO Marcoule

The CEA in Marcoule have numerous laboratories and research institutes which carry out research into;
A science museum for the general public, Visiatome Marcoule, devoted to energy issues is located by the Marcoule site.
While most facilities are located at the main Marcoule site, a small number of facilities at Pierrelatte do also belong to the Marcoule Nuclear Site.
In 2007 over 500 million euros was spent supporting the work of the 30 laboratories.

Gallery