China, France expected to sign big deals

French media said Fillon is also trying to further warm relations with Beijing and prepare for a possible visit by French President Nicolas Sarkozy to China around the opening ceremony of the Shanghai World Expo in May 2010.
The French power company Electricite De France, with French nuclear group Areva, are to sign the nuclear deal with Guangdong Nuclear Power Holdings Co, one of the country's two nuclear-energy firms, to build two nuclear power plants in Taishan, Guangdong province, AFP reported.
According to French media, Fillon is also promoting two other related projects here, a nuclear-waste disposal plant and a Sino-French nuclear institute in Guangdong.
The two nations are also likely to sign an agreement to let enginemaker CFM International, a joint venture between General Electric and France's Safran, provide its LEAP-X turbofan engines for the C919, China's first proprietary jumbo jet that is expected to rival the Airbus A320 and Boeing 737, French daily Les Echos said. Deliveries of the C919 are expected to start in 2016.
The new EC175-Z15 helicopter, jointly developed and manufactured by the two sides, has just successfully performed its official maiden flight on Thursday in Marseilles, Southeast France.
The agreements, if finally reached, are likely to be signed after Fillon meets Premier Wen Jiabao during the three-day visit which started yesterday. He is also to meet President Hu Jintao and top legislator Wu Bangguo.
The visit comes as ties between Beijing and Paris gradually lose the shadow cast by Sarkozy's public embracing of the Dalai Lama in December 2008. The move irritated Beijing and delayed a summit between Chinese with EU leaders.
French media said now Paris is eager to revamp its relations with Beijing due to economic concerns; Kazinform cites China Daily.
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