France’s EDF and Enel of Italy on Tuesday set out an agreement aimed at building four nuclear plants in Italy – the first since a national referendum halted the country’s nuclear industry in 1987 in the wake of Chernobyl.

Pierre Gadonneix, EDF chairman, and Fulvio Conti, chief executive of Enel, signed the agreement in Rome with President Nicolas Sarkozy of France and Silvio Berlusconi, the Italian prime minister. Mr Sarkozy and Mr Berlusconi also signed a separate accord on civilian nuclear co-operation.