HISPANIC CAREER WORLD
S U M M E R / FA L L 2 0 1 0
“Lighting our Way”
By Katie McKy
J
uan “Jonny” Abendaño, an
Electrical I&C Engineer for
AREVA in Charlotte, says,
“We are building the first US nuclear
power plant in over 30 years.”
AREVA has the muscle to erect that
plant, with over 50,000 employees
at hundreds of sites in over a
hundred countries, but AREVA isn’t
a one-trick phoenix. It has a has a
renewable arm that’s as muscular
as one of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s,
with wind energy, bioenergy, solar
power and hydrogen power. And
AREVA takes old, familiar energy
forms, such as the burning of wood,
which is a kind of bioenergy, and
upgrades them with new plant
matter that isn’t just green in color.
For example, burning various plant
matters can release 75% less CO2
than burning gasoline.
The vast wingspan of AREVA lets
Abendaño soar. “AREVA gives me
vast opportunities. I get to move to
different countries. There are just
so many challenging experiences
within this company.”
Abendaño is currently an
Instrumentation and Control
Engineer who’s upgrading
“In a company with AREVA’s breadth and depth, he could work
anywhere along the nuclear train, as AREVA mines uranium, enriches
it, designs and constructs reactors, maintains those reactors, and
recycles and transports spent fuel.”
“AREVA gives me
vast opportunities.
I get to move to
different countries.
There are just so
many challenging
experiences within
this company.”
systems. “I upgrade analog to
digital equipment and design and
implement I&C modifications.” JUAN “JONNY” ABENDAÑO,
CASENERGY MEMBER
But in a company with AREVA’s ELECTRICAL ENGINEER,
breadth and depth, he could work AREVA
anywhere along the nuclear train,
as AREVA mines uranium, enriches
the CASEnergy Coalition supports
it, designs and constructs reactors,
AREVA, AREVA supports Abendaño.
maintains those reactors, and
recycles and transports spent fuel.
If it’s nuclear, AREVA is there. “Even though it’s a large company,
they treat their employees as family.”
And AREVA is a member of an
even larger organization, the But at AREVA, Abendaño has learned
Clean and Safe Energy Coalition much more than the stages of nuclear
(CASEnergy Coalition), which is energy production. He has learned
a large, grassroots coalition that that learning never ends at AREVA
unites unlikely allies across the and in the nuclear sector. “Learn not
business, environmental, academic, only your studies, but how to lead
consumer and labor community to and work with others. Get ready for a
support nuclear energy. And as never-ending life of learning.