3. Current fuel cycle in France and future "4th generation" cycle (reminder)

3.1 France's current fuel cycle

France's nuclear fleet currently comprises 58 PWRs, with a total installed capacity of 63 GWe. The average annual reference volume of nuclear fuel consumed by these reactors is around 1,200 t of fuel, including around 1,000 t of UO ₂ fuel (natural uranium enriched to less than 5% in ²³⁵ U), 120 t of MOX fuel (fuel made from plutonium from spent fuel processing) and 80 t of URE fuel (enriched reprocessed uranium made from –URT reprocessed uranium). The current nuclear fuel cycle is therefore a partially closed cycle with recycling of plutonium and reprocessed uranium, known as the "reprocessing cycle" (§