https://www.iter.org/

https://www.iter.org/

On 27.02.2014 Elka became the first Croatian company that has met the necessary prequalification conditions to participate in the tenders for the ITER project.

The construction of ITER is a joint project of the EU, the U.S., Russia, China, India, Japan and Korea that co-finance a project worth 13 billion Euros, and it represents the realization of the most demanding energy experiment of our time – the construction of the first thermonuclear fusion reactor ITER in Cardache in France.

The process of prequalification of ELKA ended 2 months the cooperation of HUP and the scientific community gathered in CRU-Croatian fusion research Unit, when was held the first meeting of CRU members and some twenty interested Croatian companies including Končar, ELKA (Borjan Pačak), Alfa tim, Fleksivod, BBR Adria, MIV, DIV, MKP and others with the objective to get acquainted with the current project tenders and methods of application for the European agency Fusion 4 Energy (F4E) which publishes and conducts soliciting for tenders for fusion energy in the EU.

In a world energy project worth 13 billion Euros, the EU will invest about 6,5 billion Euros in the activities related to the construction of the device itself and manufacturing of specialized equipment, i.e. the necessary studies. The EU wants to assign that amount through direct business agreements to the EU companies whose participation in the construction of ITER is coordinated by the European agency Fusion for Energy (F4E).

„Registration of Croatian companies with the Agency F4E already is a significant reference in the EU, and getting a job at ITER, practically makes the company recognizable in the markets of all other participating countries (the U.S., China, Russia, Japan, Korea, India). This is also a reference for participation in the construction of the first fusion power plan DEMO. ITER is not a fiction, and has clear deadlines for realization: completion of the fusion reactor till 2022, then getting a stable “burning” plasma in ITER till 2027, while after that till 2035 should be completed also the fusion power plant DEMO. “Getting energy from fusion is a part of the EU energy strategy for the period till 2050, and therefore EU is ready to invest in ITER as much as 6,5 billion Euros for the construction activities of the EU companies, and that piece of cake we want to win”– said Mr. Tonči Tadić, D.Sc., a member of the Management board of F4E and coordinator of the CRU at the gathering in the Croatian Employers’ Association.

„At least 6,5 billion which will be invested by the EU, is intended for the companies from the European Union in the field of production of high-voltage cables, electronics, transformers, structural elements, heating and cooling systems, telecommunications equipment, seamless tubes, metal constructions, construction and transportation of special cargo. For now only a thousand companies are licensed for ITER, unfortunately none from Croatia, therefore HUP is establishing a Coordination of fusion companies to examine and stimulate the interest of the companies, join them in interest groups and prepare for participation in the EU tenders for ITER. By inclusion in the list of suppliers, the company acquires important references for future projects and is positioned on the European and global market” – said Mrs. Maja Pokrovac, M.Sc., director of HUP’s branch association and F4E commissioner for Croatian fusion industry (ILO).

Press:
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