Hinkley
Britain’s vote to leave the EU makes it “more necessary than ever” for EDF to delay making a final investment decision on the Hinkley Point nuclear power plant in the UK, said three powerful trade unions representing thousands of workers at the company. The CGT, CFE-CGC and the FO unions issued a joint statement on Thursday saying the Brexit vote added “new elements of uncertainty” to the £18bn project that is due be built in south-west England by the French state-controlled utility. Emmanuel Macron, the French economy minister, on Tuesday insisted that the UK vote to leave the EU would have “no consequences” for the Hinkley Point project, urging EDF to press ahead with its final investment decision. But in a BBC interview on Wednesday, Michel Sapin, the French finance minister, said the project had become “more difficult” following the Brexit vote.
FT 30th June 2016 read more »
THE Hinkley C nuclear power station project could become a casualty of Brexit, it has been reported, while EDF says the scheme will not be affected by the vote. Plans to build the new £18 billion plant in Somerset could be cancelled now that Britain has voted to leave the EU, a Government advisor has told the The Times. However, energy firm EDF has insisted the Brexit vote will have “no impact” on their strategy. Paul Dorfman said it is “extremely unlikely” that French energy giant EDF will continue with its plans, in the latest of a series of delays for the development.
Bridgwater Mercury 30th June 2016 read more »
The French government still plans to build a nuclear power plant at Hinkley Point, despite the result of the referendum, according to Mr Sapin.
Independent 30th June 2016 read more »
Bradwell
The next steps have been taken in the decommissioning of Bradwell power station in Essex as it has just had all of its underground waste storage vaults cleaned. Waste, including metal, sand and sludge, was stored in 18 different vaults during the site’s 40 year life. The area will now be covered for the care and maintenance phase before being completely removed as part of final site clearance in the future. The power station stopped generating electricity in March 2002, after running for 40 years.
ITV 30th June 2016 read more »
NDA 29th June 2016 read more »
Bradwell has become the first Magnox site to empty and decontaminate all of its underground waste storage vaults ready for the care and maintenance phase, Magnox Sites has announced. Owned by Cavendish Fluor Partnership, Magnox Sites is the management and operations contractor responsible for safely managing 12 nuclear sites and one hydroelectric plant in the UK working for the sites’ owner, the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA).
World Nuclear News 30th June 2016 read more »
Energy Policy
Amber Rudd, the British Energy Minister (and EU supporter) has vowed to continue with her pro-nuclear power policy – while reiterating UK government commitment to cutting carbon emissions. Commenting on the vote in favour of British Independence from Brussels – she said: “To be clear, Britain will leave the EU. “However, I want to underline our commitment to the issue over which I have primary responsibility; climate change. “We made a clear commitment to acting on climate change. That will continue. “Climate change has not been downgraded as a threat. It remains one of the most serious long-term risks to our economic and national security. “Beyond that, we will continue to invest in clean energy. We have agreed to support up to 4GW of offshore wind and other technologies for deployment in the 2020s – providing the costs come down. “At the same time we made tough decisions on support for renewable energy, reflecting our core belief that technologies should be able to stand on their own two feet. “We remain committed to new nuclear power in the UK – to provide clean, secure energy. “Government has prepared the ground for a fleet of new nuclear stations. Three consortia have proposals to develop 18GW of new power stations at six new sites across the UK.”
Scottish Energy News 1st July 2016 read more »
The government has this morning won plaudits from green businesses, after announcing it has agreed to set a new legally binding target to cut emissions 57 per cent against 1990 levels by 2032. As expected the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) issued a statement on its website confirming Ministers have approved the recommendations for the fifth carbon budget put forward by the independent Committee on Climate Change (CCC). John Sauven, director at Greenpeace, warned the positive signals provided by the fifth carbon budget risked being undermined by the continued absence of a credible plan for ensuring it is met. “The government has kept its word to adopt this important target to limit the UK’s carbon emissions,” he said. “This is music to our ears… But, it’s no good having numbers on spreadsheets without the delivery to match. The absence of clear government plans and support for action on renewable energy, homes, cars, agriculture and planes shows how far the rhetoric of climate action has drifted from anything real. The only plan the government seems to have is expensive and dodgy nuclear power stations where the Committee now says the government need a plan B because they might not happen.”
Business Green 30th June 2016 read more »
The UK government has set a fifth carbon budget aimed at cutting the country’s carbon dioxide emissions by almost 57% by 2032 compared with 1990 levels. Legislation ultimately aims to cut the UK’s emissions by 80% by 2050. The UK’s Climate Change Act of 2008 sets the ambitious 2050 target. It requires the government to set legally-binding carbon budgets, which limit the country’s emissions for consecutive five-year periods. The budgets are designed to put emission reductions on an appropriate and cost-effective path to meeting the 2050 target.
World Nuclear News 30th June 2016 read more »
Committee on Climate Change warns UK must tackle ‘policy shortfall’ to meet new carbon targets: On the same day as the government announced it would officially adopt the fifth carbon budget and its goal of slashing emissions 57 per cent against 1990 levels by 2030, the Committee on Climate Change (CCC) has released its annual update detailing the challenges Ministers will have to overcome if they are to meet the new target. The CCC’s 2016 Progress Report confirms the UK has made significant progress with its decarbonisation efforts in recent years, cutting carbon emissions by an average of 4.5 per cent a year over the past three years to ensure emissions are now 38 per cent below 1990 levels. However, the report notes that the emissions reductions have been achieved almost entirely through the power sector, thanks to record investment in renewables and a reduction in coal use. It warns that progress on other fronts, including low carbon heat, energy efficiency and transport, has “stalled”. “Rates of installing insulation in homes has fallen by 60-90 per cent, take-up of low-carbon heating remains below 2.5 per cent of demand and, in the past year, emissions have been rising in the transport and agriculture sectors,” the CCC said. It added that based on current plans the UK was set to fall around 100 million tonnes of CO2 savings short of the target recommended for the fifth carbon budget period from 2028 to 2032. The policy gap represents around half the emissions savings that are required through to 2030 and the CCC warned that the gap could be larger if current policies fail to deliver anticipated emissions savings.
Business Green 30th June 2016 read more »
The UK has no policies in place to meet more than half of the carbon emission cuts required by law by 2030, the government’s official advisers warned on Thursday, the same day ministers committed to the target.
Guardian 30th June 2016 read more »
The UK’s carbon reduction policies fall far short of those required to hit tough new targets set on Thursday, the Government’s official climate change advisor has warned. Ministers confirmed they would accept the Committee on Climate Change (CCC)’s advice and set a new target for cutting UK carbon emission in the period 2028-2032 to 57pc below 1990 levels – or about a third below current levels. But just hours after the target was confirmed by the Government, the CCC issued a report warning that the UK’s current policy plans were vastly inadequate and would only achieve about half of the reductions now needed to meet the targets.
Telegraph 30th June 2016 read more »
Times 1st July 2016 read more »
Carbon Brief 30th June 2016 read more »
Brexit: 94 unanswered questions for climate and energy policy.
Carbon Brief 29th June 2016 read more »
Amid all the other news happening right now, you might have missed a vital story: the government has accepted the Climate Change Committee’s recommendation for the ‘fifth carbon budget’. This is the total amount of greenhouse gases which the UK economy will be allowed to emit in the 2028-30 period, which will now be cut by 57% on 1990 levels. This would be important for the UK’s contribution to tackling climate change at any time. In the aftermath of the EU referendum campaign it takes on special significance, for it nails the myth that Brexit will tear up all of the UK’s environmental policies and commitments.
Guardian 30th June 2016 read more »
Companies
French utility EDF and Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) said Tuesday they’ve signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to collaborate on civil nuclear power, including MHI taking a stake in Areva NP and joint development of the Atmea reactor design. In a joint statement, the companies said the signing of the MoU “is a strategic move to strengthen the links between the French and Japanese nuclear power industries, recognizing the strategic interest to combine in certain fields of civil nuclear energy the strengths of EDF and MHI.”
Kallanish Energy 29th June 2016 read more »
Areva
During the World Nuclear Exhibition (WNE) which took place from June 28-30 at Le Bourget, France, AREVA signed contracts with international nuclear customers.
Energy Business Review 30th June 2016 read more »
Radwaste
NFLA submits views on higher activity radioactive strategy – NFLA opposes greater ‘flexibility’ in NDA policy and is concerned that environmental principles are being ignored.
NFLA 30th June 2016 read more »
Brexit
NFLA considers what Britain’s vote to leave the EU could have on nuclear policy, energy policy and defence policy – initial views are of real uncertainty, investment issues and regulatory concerns.
NFLA 30th June 2016 read more »
US
Georgia Power’s Vogtle construction project has reached a new milestone with the placement of unit 4’s CA05 module into the reactor’s containment building.
World Nuclear News 30th June 2016 read more »
Trident
Anti-trident campaigners are marking the last day of a month-long protest at a nuclear plant in Berkshire. The peaceful protest at AWE Burghfield saw a group of campaigners form a human blockade – closing one of the roads and numerous entrances to the site. Red crosses were tied to fences around the plant on Thursday to demonstrate “resistance to continuing proliferation nuclear weapons” in the UK. Up to 50 police officers are deployed to the site on the final day.
BBC 30th June 2016 read more »
FINAL approval for the UK’s Successor submarine programme WILL be given before Parliament breaks for the summer recess, the Defence Secretary says.
In Cumbria 30th June 2016 read more »
Renewables – solar
Protestors are celebrating the news that an appeal by Castillium, the firm behind the controversial 10-hectare park on farmland between Woodend, Bigrigg and Moor Row, has been thrown out. The five-megawatt park – the size of around 14 football pitches – would have had 19,400 solar panels, making it one of the biggest in the county. Copeland Council rejected the plans last October and the government’s Planning Inspectorate has now turned down the appeal. The scheme attracted 92 letters of objection, including strong protests from Egremont and Cleator Moor Town Councils, alongside 97 letters of support. Concerns centered on visual impact, noise and traffic.
Whitehaven News 30th June 2016 read more »
District Heating
Government has this week launched a consultation on how best to allocate £320m of funding for low-carbon heating projects in urban areas. The money was allocated in the Spending Review last year and the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) is now consulting on how best to deploy the funding, including deciding what kind of projects should be supported and how the progress of projects should be monitored.
Business Green 30th June 2016 read more »
The UK government is to invest £320 million over the next five years in schemes across towns and cities in England to take low carbon heat and supply it to keep homes and businesses warm. Heat can be taken from a range of sources including large heat pumps, combined heat and power plants and deep geothermal plants, which take heat from underground rocks miles below the surface of the earth. It is then pumped around homes and businesses which is great for bringing down the cost of energy bills and it also helps to reduce carbon emissions. Without a network, it is impossible to re-use this heat and it simply gets dumped into the atmosphere. In Islington for example, they are expanding their existing heat network at Bunhill so that it can take heat that comes out of the London Underground (Northern line) and put it into their network.
Scottish Energy News 1st July 2016 read more »
Energy Efficiency
The government has set out its proposals for the first phase of reforms to the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) energy efficiency scheme, which it aims to refocus to ensure it better helps the poorest households. From next year the slimmed down scheme will adopt a raft of changes aimed at targeting efforts on cutting energy bills and improving household insulation levels for some of the poorest households in the UK, according to a consultation published by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) yesterday.
Business Green 30th June 2016 read more »
Fuel Poverty
Nearly 2.5 million households in England are living in fuel poverty, according to fresh figures. Fuel poverty — defined as households that have to fork out more than 10 per cent of their income on heating their homes — increased by 1.4 per cent to 2.38 million in 2014, the latest year for which figures are available, according to statistics from the Department of Energy and Climate Change. Peter Smith, head of policy at National Energy Action, said that it was “hugely disappointing” to see fuel poverty levels back on the rise, which reflected an increase in wholesale energy costs during the period.
Times 1st July 2016 read more »
Fossil Fuels
Energy ministers from the Group of 20 major economies meeting in Beijing this week came under a three-pronged attack on Tuesday over their failure to agree a deadline for the phasing out of subsidies on fossil fuels. Officials from the United Nations and European Union, plus 200 non-governmental organizations, urged the G20 to end years of fruitless talks and follow the lead of the Group of Seven industrialized nations by setting a date for the end of subsidies on coal, gas and oil
Reuters 28th June 2016 read more »
