New uranium leak in French Areva factory

Paris: French nuclear firm Areva has detected a uranium leak that could date back several years at a factory in southeastern France, the French safety authority said on Friday.

The nuclear watchdog of Europe's biggest atomic energy nation said it had dispatched a team of experts to check the site, but did not give any indication about the size of the leak.

Areva, a state-controlled company which makes nuclear reactors and deals with uranium, said the leak was confined to its FBFC site and did not pose a danger to the environment.

"The defective pipe was shut by our teams," Areva said in a statement, adding that the pipe linked a workshop making fuel to a uranium treatment station.

News of the leak came the day after France ordered tests at all its 19 nuclear power plants following the discovery that liquid containing non-enriched uranium had been accidentally released from another Areva site in southeast France.