FPN08-53

ITER Cost Review Nears Completion

September 5, 2008

An independent cost review of the ITER cost, commissioned by the ITER Council, is nearing completion. The review team, headed by Dr. Frank Briscoe of the European Union, has two members assigned by each of the seven ITER Parties. The panel met in Cadarache July 28-30, will have its second, and final, meeting in mid-September, and report to back to the ITER Management Advisory Committee (MAC) at its scheduled October 22 meeting.

Briscoe said the charge to his committee has two parts: the first to review the ITER Organization's estimates for its own resource needs, and the second to review the estimates for the construction project itself. He said the committee would focus on the anticipated increases in the new estimates compared to the original estimates. Increases of the order of 30% are expected due to design changes and schedule slippage.