Advanced NuclearPower - AREVA

Nuclear Serviceswhere a similar type of alliancingcontract was successfully implemented afew years ago.It is anticipated that up to 400engineers, technicians and artisanswill perform the outage work with ateam of 30 to 50 permanently based atthe station for year-round routinemaintenance.Win-win CommercialArrangementsThe commercial arrangements of thiscontract are innovative and complex.The Consortium, in a risk/rewardsharingprogram, aligns its interestswith those of BE for an equal share ofboth risks and rewards. By jointlydefining work scopes and expectedcosts, if actual costs are less thanexpected, the Consortium shares thebenefit within pre-defined limits withBE. If actual costs are more, thenthe Consortium and BE share the loss.All account books for this projectwill be open to the customer.In addition, a risk/reward-sharingprogram is tailored to key performanceindicators (KPI) as identified by BE.The KPI includes schedule, quality,safety, and individual and cumulativedose. These provisions ensure thatperformance meets or exceeds BE’sexpectations by coupling compensationdirectly with performance.Teaming and Culture ChangeEntering into a long term partneringagreement requires a culture change.A joint approach to change managementwith BE has led to a teamingarrangement with a 3-tier changemanagement structure. This changemanagement structure is integratedinto the overall project managementstructure with the following objectives:The October 2, 2001 contract signing• Create a team with a collaborativeculture,• Develop a mutual understandingof each other’s business objectives,• Use innovation to improve Sizewell B’sperformance and availability.Safety and PerformanceEnhancement Projects (SPEP)As seen by BE, the deregulatedelectricity market in the UK togetherwith the new electricity tradingarrangement (NETA) since October2000, are increasing pressure onSizewell B to reduce costs at the sametime as increasing output and reliability.A dedicated project called The Safetyand Performance Enhancement Project(SPEP) has been set up at the Sizewell BPower Station. Key members, BE, theConsortium and Alstom (for theturbine), formed a team to assist thestation in achieving the following goals:• Outage length reduction,• Maintenance scope reduction,• Fuel utilization,• Life-time extension.Framatome ANP has already assignedan expert to participate to the SPEPprogram.A Response to NewMarketing ConditionsThe innovative arrangements of thiscontract with British Energy foreshadowthe new conditions of the nuclearservices business in the areas of costoptimization, performance improvementand risk sharing. These arrangementsdemonstrate the capability of bothBE and the Consortium, led byFramatome ANP, to respond to thenew market condition.Through transparency and risk/reward-sharing, as well as with thereduction of the number of contractingcompanies, the utility orchestrates itsown success through outage cost savingsand plant availability increase.Advanced Nuclear Power N O 3 January 2002 19