Life cycle assessment of nuclear power in France: EDF case study

Abstract

The French electricity mix is dominated by nuclear power, representing 69% of the power generation in 2021, and further development of nuclear power for electricity is expected. This study applied Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to evaluate the potential environmental impact of nuclear power generated by EDF SA., the world’s largest nuclear operator and electric utility company operating all the nuclear reactors in France. The study’s main objective was to assess the potential environmental impacts of nuclear power, from raw material extraction to end-of-life, according to several indicators, while focusing on the climate change indicator. The total impact of nuclear power on climate change (3.7 gCO2eq/kWh) is found to be in the lower range of LCA studies on nuclear power conducted so far. Mining and milling of uranium are the most contributing stages, while EDF’s electricity generation is the second largest contributor. The key output of this LCA is the extensive data collected, resulting in a detailed LCA model covering the entire French nuclear fleet. Future studies should focus on (1) collecting more specific data on uranium mining and processing, as these are so far based on database data, and (2) addressing other LCA indicators, such as water use, land use, and ecotoxicity.