According to a new study by the French state auditor (Cour des Comptes), nuclear production costs for EDF's 58 nuclear reactors rose by more than 20% between 2010 and 2013, from €49.6/MWh in 2010 to €59.8/MWh in 2013 (+16% in constant euro). This strong increase is bound to massive investments in maintenance and safety, which doubled over this period, from €1.75bn in 2010 to €3.8bn in 2013 (+117%); they contributed to the increase in the production cost by €5.1/MWh. Since 2012, EDF has had to register maintenance expenses (€385m in 2012 and €831m in 2013) as capital expenditures instead of operation expenses. Operation expenses rose by 11%, to €10bn, contributing by €2.7/MWh to the production cost increase. The "loyer économique", an indicator used to calculate an average global cost over the lifetime of the nuclear fleet, rose by 7.9% to €8.5bn, contributing by €1.7/MWh to the cost increase. This cost increase is also linked to a 1% drop in nuclear generation between 2010 and 2013.
EDF plans to invest €11bn in post-Fukushima safety measures and third-generation reactors over the 2014-2025 period (up to €1.6bn/year). Over this period, the group will also invest €1bn/year in "normal" maintenance and €1.3bn/year in renovation and replacement of large components whose lifetime is below 40 years. The Cour des Comptes estimates that 2011-2033 investment should reach €110bn (€90bn in 2010 €), not including used fuel management (€16.3bn in 2013), dismantling expenses (€34.4bn in 2013) and waste management expenses (€31.8bn in 2013). This would raise the average cost ("coût courant économique") to €62/MWh by 2025, in the case of a lifetime extension to 50 years.
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