Toshiba expands in US with NRG nuclear tie-up
TOKYO (AFP) — Japan's Toshiba Corp. announced a deal Wednesday aimed at expanding its share of US nuclear power plant construction with a 300 million dollar investment in a venture with US giant NRG Energy Inc.
Toshiba will become the prime contractor for all future projects by the company, Nuclear Innovation North America, which will promote the deployment of advanced boiling water reactor power plants in North America.
The venture will be owned 12 percent by Toshiba and 88 percent by NRG.
The tie-up "is an important step toward establishing Toshiba's presence in the US advanced boiling water reactor business," Yasuharu Igarashi, a Toshiba executive vice president, said in a statement.
"We expect the new company to achieve a powerful synergy and carry forward the construction of new plants in North America."
Toshiba is already involved in engineering and procurement work on two advanced boiling water reactor plants being developed in Texas by NRG and local electric utility CPS Energy.
The two facilities would be the first nuclear power plants of their kind in the United States, with operations scheduled to begin in 2015 and 2016, it said.
Toshiba said it would continue to promote its nuclear power plant business through its US subsidiary, Toshiba America Nuclear Energy Corporation.
The Japanese giant owns US nuclear plant maker Westinghouse Electric, which it bought from British Nuclear Fuels in 2006 in one of the largest Japanese overseas acquisitions in years.
Toshiba expects strong growth in atomic power due to concerns over high oil prices, and has positioned energy as one of its core businesses.
