Enel SpA (ENEL.MI) Chief Executive Fulvio Conti said Tuesday the company is starting talks with potential Italian and international partners for its nuclear power program.
Enel SpA (ENEL.MI) Chief Executive Fulvio Conti said Tuesday the company is starting talks with potential Italian and international partners for its nuclear power program.

Enel and France 's Electricite de France SA (EDF.FR) are together investing in the company's EUR16 billion to EUR18 billion nuclear program.

"In the coming months we will start our survey and the process of pre-qualification for companies interested in taking part in the building of four nuclear reactors," said Conti at a meeting with business leaders in Rome .

He said the company had already been in touch with potential Italian partners, and that talks will intensify from Tuesday onwards.

Enel said last year it will work with EdF to build 6,400 megawatts of generating capacity from nuclear power. The first of the four planned nuclear plants is slated to be operational by 2020.

The Enel-EdF joint venture is open to minority shareholders. Several foreign and Italian companies have said they are interested in getting involved in Italy 's nascent nuclear market. They include Finmeccanica SpA (FNC.MI), GDF Suez (GSZ.FR), E.ON AG (EAON.XE), Iberdrola SA (IBE.MC), Edison SpA (EDN.MI) and A2A SpA (A2A.MI).

Conti said Tuesday it is necessary to overcome concerns among local populations about the safety of nuclear plants, but he added that it is too early to discuss their location.

In late December, Italy 's government approved the layout of a draft decree that sets the rules to pick the sites for the new nuclear plants, as it aims to see a 2013 start in the construction of the first atomic facility after a ban of more than two decades.

The government said last month it would have provided the details within the following three months. Subsequently, interested companies will be able to apply to build the facilities.

Italy banned nuclear energy in a 1987 referendum following the Chernobyl accident in Ukraine , then part of the former Soviet Union .

Last year, parliament reintroduced nuclear power in the country, requiring the government to set the rules for possible locations and where to safely deposit the waste.

The government wants around 25% of Italy 's electricity to be atomic in the future as it seeks ways to reduce high prices.

Enel aims to supply around half of this from its joint venture with EdF.

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