Beginning in the first quarter of 2013, the number of construction workers on the ITER site will rise sharply, passing the 1,000 mark in less than six months to stabilize at about 2,600-2,800 in 2015, before finally declining in 2016.
By late 2014, construction personnel will be joined by specialists in charge of assembling the machine. They will be 1,000 by mid-2016 and close to 1,600 in late 2018.
From late 2015 to late 2016, these two combined workforces will lead to a peak of more than 3,500 workers on the ITER site, not counting the present ITER staff and contractors amounting currently to approximately 1,000 people (this will remain stable throughout the coming years).
Projections from both Agence Iter France and the French regional authorities indicate that accommodation for some 1,500 to 2,000 workers arriving in the region will have to be found during this peak period.
These figures were announced last Friday 19 October at a meeting organized by the Commission Locale d'Information (CLI) in Vinon-sur-Verdon.
The
CLI acts as an official interface between ITER Organization (nuclear operator of the ITER facility) and the local population, which means that anything the public feels it should know falls under its jurisdiction. Housing 1,500 to 2,000 workers close enough to ITER so that commuting does not exceed 30 minutes either way is definitely an issue that concerns the local population and authorities—the housing market in the defined area is rather tense, with an estimated rental stock that does not exceed 300 to 500 units.