Appointed CEO in November 2023, Nicolas Maes joined the group in 2011, which became Orano in 2018. The new team captain looks back at projects that, in his eyes, illustrate the group’s priorities in an industry undergoing major renewal.
Industrial performance conditions our ability to deliver on our commitments to our current customers and our future growth strategy. By revisiting our processes, perfecting the control of our plants and projects, and leveraging digitalization and AI, we are strengthening the robustness and efficiency of our industrial model. The success of this approach rests on the commitment of each Orano employee and that of our industrial partners. This key area is addressed by the Opteam 26 plan, which we are rolling out in 2024.
We have a constant focus on developing the long-term nuclear safety and control of our facilities. The principal areas we are working on notably involve anchoring a leadership culture around nuclear safety, industrial safety, occupational safety, radiation protection, and preserving the environment. We must strive to reach the same level of prevention and high standards for our employees and subcontractors, everywhere in the world.
We are embarking on a phase of strong development with the implementation of our projects in our core businesses and in new sectors. These include extending the Georges Besse 2 enrichment plant, projects to renew our mining capacities, the launch of the TN Eagle Factory for nuclear casks, and the ramping up of production at the Jean Fourniols Stable Isotopes Laboratory. In addition, certain new projects are also turning into growth drivers. Until recently in their research and development phases, these successes underline our capacity for innovation. Orano Med has launched the construction of the first two laboratories dedicated to targeted alpha therapy drugs for cancer treatment. Meanwhile the program for recycling electric vehicle battery materials has just entered its industrial design phase.
The sustainable resurgence of nuclear energy can only be achieved by mastering the back end of the cycle, which combines the processing and full recycling of materials. Through Orano, France has been able to develop world-class excellence in processing-recycling over a period approaching six decades. The strategy has recently been confirmed at state-level in France for the period extending well beyond 2040, and this calls for significant investment in our Orano La Hague site. With our partners, we will define the necessary industrial assets to recycle fuels through to the end of this century and play our part in supporting the innovative startups developing AMRs (advanced modular reactors) and SMRs (small modular reactors).
Orano is working with all the players in the sector to bring together and build up the necessary know-how to meet the strong demand for energy production coming down the line with the nuclear revitalization plan. We need to attract close to 2,000 new permanent employees per year, retain our talents, and adapt our skills to the company’s needs. This very ambitious endeavor is key to our success because it is our today 17,500 employees who will be the driving force behind the deployment of our roadmap, working collectively with the team spirit and cohesion that we need to have to overcome challenges and harness our opportunities.
Our expertise in transforming, recovering and adding value to nuclear materials makes Orano a unique player at the heart of today’s key challenges: climate, energy sovereignty, and efficient use of resources, whether natural uranium or other critical strategic materials. We are proud to be able to offer solutions for today’s and tomorrow’s world, in energy and beyond, in new areas calling for our industrial know-how, skills and cutting-edge technologies. Our business model is rooted in society. It carries the meaning and human values that underpin our company’s purpose.
