Hinkley
Five board members of French state-controlled utility EDF are petitioning to have the courts annul last month’s board decision to push ahead with the controversial Hinkley Point power project in the UK. Five rebels on the board, all of whom represent the EDF unions, said on Wednesday that the decision should be invalidated because Jean-Bernard Lévy, the chief executive, did not tell them that the UK government planned to delay its decision on the plant. Law firm Alain Levy, which represents the five union board members, said on Wednesday that it had filed a complaint with the Paris commercial court, adding that the case would be heard on September 5. EDF declined to comment. EDF has admitted that Jean-Bernard Lévy knew that a signing ceremony scheduled for the project site on the day after the board meeting had been pushed back by the UK. But the company insists that Mr Lévy did not know that a full review would take place.
FT 31st Aug 2016 read more »
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City AM 31st Aug 2016 read more »
Tensions over Britain’s proposed nuclear power station at Hinkley Point have flared again in France as five worker representatives on the board of the French power company EDF filed a challenge to overturn the company’s controversial decision to build the nuclear reactors. The employee representatives believe EDF’s chief executive “did not communicate crucial information about a major project” he was aware of before the 28 July meeting at which the board of directors approved the £18bn project to build Britain’s first new nuclear reactors in decades, their law firm told Agence France-Presse. The complaint also protests against the participation of several directors “with conflicts of interests”, according to the law firm Alain Levy. The challenge claims that some of the EDF board members who voted in favour of Hinkley Point represent companies that are EDF customers and could benefit from the UK contract. French firms Bouygues and Vallourec have denied that members of their boards who are also on the board of EDF had a conflict of interest in their Hinkley Point vote.
Guardian 31st Aug 2016 read more »
Beijing has urged Theresa May to make “wise” choices that help write “a new chapter” of UK-China relations when she flies into Hangzhou later this week for the G20 summit amid tensions over the controversial Hinkley Point C nuclear project. The so-called “golden era” of UK-China ties – sealed under her predecessor, David Cameron – has threatened to unravel since May took power in July. Shortly after taking office the British Prime Minister angered Beijing by announcing that approval of the £18bn ($23.5bn) nuclear plant, in which China was to hold a one-third stake, would be delayed, apparently as a result of security concerns over Chinese involvement. The simmering Hinkley row will be hanging over May’s first trip to China for the two-day gathering of the world’s major economies, which begins on Sunday.
Guardian 1st Sept 2016 read more »
Wylfa
A second consultation on the proposed nuclear power plant in Anglesey has been launched. Horizon Nuclear Power estimates Wylfa Newydd, which will include two reactors with a total capacity of 2,700MW, will take around nine years to build and have an operational life of 60 years. The consultation, which will run until 25th October, is the last major one scheduled before the company submits its application for a Development Consent Order in 2017. Horizon is seeking feedback on the updated nuclear plans and its supporting infrastructure before the proposals are finalised.
Energy Live News 1st Sept 2016 read more »
Wales Online 31st Aug 2016 read more »
BBC 31st Aug 2016 read more »
Daily Post 31st Aug 2016 read more »
Consultation explains how workers will get to the massive construction site when the proposed work gets underway later this decade.
Daily Post 31st Aug 2016 read more »
Sizewell
Government officials say there is still “no indication” of when Prime Minister Theresa May will make a final decision on the proposals for the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station. Meanwhile, there is growing speculation that the delay could mean that proposals for the Sizewell C – which is dependent on Hinkley being built – and Bradwell plants being dropped altogether. It is said Mrs May’s concern hinges on the involvement of China in the projects, although she has also written of her desires for closer business and trading ties between Britain and the Far East country, the world’s second-biggest economy.
East Anglian Daily Times 31st Aug 2016 read more »
Politics
Jeremy Corbyn is facing a backlash from trade unions, party members and his shadow business minister after opposing the construction of a new nuclear power plant at Hinkley Point. A co-founder of a local Momentum group has abandoned her support for the Labour leader, warning that his stance on the £18bn project proved he was an “anarchist” and “not socialist”. Rachel Garrick switched to supporting Owen Smith after Corbyn declared his opposition to the new plant at Hinkley Point C in Somerset. “Tories have just put up the cost of your electricity by giving a blank cheque to EDF for a power station that doesn’t work,” he Tweeted.
DWP Examination 31st July 2016 read more »
Decommissioning
Officials from EM headquarters and Savannah River Site (SRS) visited the United Kingdom’s Sellafield and Dounreay sites this summer to explore how the U.S. and U.K. can benefit from sharing expertise in nuclear waste cleanup to reduce costs, improve safety and increase efficiency. Stacy Charboneau, EM Associate Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Field Operations, and SRS Manager Jack Craig gained insight into Sellafield’s highest priority cleanup efforts: the Legacy Ponds and Silos Program, comprised of four main plants once used to store waste and spent fuel prior to reprocessing — the First Generation Magnox Storage Pond, Pile Fuel Storage Pond, Pile Fuel Cladding Silo and Magnox Swarf Storage Silos. “I have been impressed by the progress being made at both Sellafield and Dounreay. The complexity of the cleanup is similar to DOE’s even though the sites are much smaller in area. It is clear that DOE and NDA have a lot to learn from one another as we go forward,”
US DOE 31st Aug 2016 read more »
Radioactive Contamination
Tim Deere-Jones is an independent marine pollution consultant and a specialist in the behavior and fate of marine pollutants in ocean, coastal and estuarine environments. He explains how radiation in the ocean from Fukushima and the UK’s Sellafield nuclear facility have impacted food safety at tremendous distances, as far away as the US West Coast. A jaw-dropping eye-opening report. This is an Encore presentation originally presented on Nuclear Hotseat #225 from October 13, 2015.
Nuclear Hotseat 31st Aug 2016 read more »
Areva
Ahead of the sale of its reactor business to EDF, Areva has begun the process of splitting off its nuclear fuel cycle activities into a new entity, tentatively referred to as ‘New Co’. In late July 2015, EDF and Areva announced they had signed a memorandum of understanding setting out the principal terms and conditions for EDF to take a majority share in Areva’s reactor business, Areva NP. The following month, EDF’s board agreed on a final valuation of Areva NP’s activities at €2.5 billion ($2.8 billion) leading Areva’s board to give a mandate to CEO Philippe Knoche to finalize negotiations on the transaction. Areva said in June that New Co would be created as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Areva SA during the second half of this year, combining the Areva Mines, Areva NC, Areva Projects and Areva Business Support companies and their respective subsidiaries. The company announced yesterday that it has formally initiated the process for transferring its nuclear fuel cycle activities to New Co.
World Nuclear News 31st Aug 2016 read more »
US
A U.S. nuclear reactor that only got up and running earlier this year after being delayed for decades has shut down following a fire. Unit 2 at the Watts Bar complex near Knoxville, Tennessee, went offline automatically late Tuesday because of a transformer fire, Jim Hopson, a spokesman for plant operator Tennessee Valley Authority, said in an e-mail. There were no injuries as a result of the blaze, which has been extinguished.
Bloomberg 31st Aug 2016 read more »
China
Over 90 per cent of people in China are concerned about environmental pollution and more than 96 per cent believe ‘green power’ could help to tackle the air pollution that is afflicting many of the country’s cities. Those are the headline findings from a major new survey of 3,000 residents of Chinese cities carried out by IPSOS and commissioned by the Chinese Renewable Energy Industries Association.
Business Green 31st Aug 2016 read more »
Japan
Tokyo Electric Power Co. Holdings Inc.’s (TEPCO) plan to restart the defunct Fukushima nuclear power plant has an increased chance of being implemented after the prefecture governor, who has campaigned against its reopening, decided against running for re-election, according to a new report by Bloomberg. TEPCO shares rose as much as 12 percent Wednesday morning – the largest price jump since May 2015, presumably in reaction to the announcement. Niigata prefecture governor Hirohiko Izumida said he would not pursue a bid for a fourth term for the October 16th elections, according to a personal statement posted on his fan page. The governor has long opposed plans to return the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant – the largest of its kind in the world – to production. Japanese laws do not require that utility companies obtain the approval of local leaders before commencing operations, but it is the expected practice. Izumida has previously demanded that TEPCO conduct further investigations into the causes of the triple meltdown at the Fukushima Dai-Ichi plant in 2011 before proposing plans to restart any of the firm’s reactors.
Oil Price 31st Aug 2016 read more »
Renewables
The UK Government must reverse the cumbersome green policy decisions it made last year to enable businesses to benefit from a generation of cost-effective, low-carbon energy technologies, the Energy and Climate Change Committee (ECC) chairman has claimed. Speaking to edie about his hopes and expectations for the upcoming Parliamentary session, ECC chair Angus MacNeil said he wants the Government to take a more holistic approach to energy investment by providing more stable support for onshore wind and solar. Industry backing remains strong for these technologies despite controversial subsidy cuts made in May last year, MacNeil said. “The UK is screaming out for renewables investment and screaming out for the Government to stop viewing itself as a company but actually to govern,” said the Na h-Eileanan an Iar MP. “They have to look again at what they’ve done with onshore wind and solar. “I think they have to be governed by the cheapest form of renewables, but they also have to recognise the people want to develop in these areas. I think the problem with the 2015 approach was that it created too many barriers to investment for business.
Edie 31st Aug 2016 read more »
Community Energy
More than 3,500 churches have turned their back on fossil fuels to embrace renewable energy. Churches from a range of denominations have either made such a switch or registered their interest in doing so, but Catholics have proved especially keen, according to figures from religious charities released on Thursday. Nearly 2,000 Catholic parishes have forsaken conventional energy in favour of green electricity in 16 dioceses, the charities said. Some made the decision after Pope Francis issued an encyclical last year urging the world to cut its dependence on fossil fuels. Some of the companies benefiting from the churches’ shift are smaller green energy groups such as Ecotricity and Good Energy rather than the larger “big six” suppliers. At least 100 Quaker meeting houses have switched to renewables by dealing directly with seven-year-old Good Energy. The move is part of a wider trend, according to the Energy UK trade association, which represents big six companies as well as smaller groups. “There is a real and increasing demand in the market for an energy supply contract which is based on more renewable sources,” a spokesman said.
FT 1st Sept 2016 read more »
Guardian 1st Sept 2016 read more »
Energy Efficiency
A 15% reduction in energy consumption in the UK has spearheaded a continental movement which has seen the European Union (EU) surpass a key energy efficiency target six years early, a new report has revealed. The European Commission’s (EC) Joint Research Centre (JRC) has published the status of energy consumption across the Member States. The report revealed that the EU-28 lowered the Union’s final energy consumption from 1,133 million tonnes of oil equivalent (mtoe) in 2000 to 1,061 mtoe in 2014. As a result, the EU has passed an indicative target for 2020 which sets maximum energy consumption at 1,086 mtoe. In total, the EU reduced final energy consumption by 6.35% between 2000 and 2014, which equates to cutting 72 mtoe from the Union’s energy demand. In regards to individual Member States, the UK reduced energy consumption by 15.3% to 129.8 mtoe, which accounts for 12% of the Union’s total consumption.
Edie 31st Aug 2016 read more »
Transport
Uptake of electric cars is too slow because of the government’s failure to invest properly in rapid charging points, according to MPs. A cross-party group said that ministers would only get halfway to their target of ensuring that 9 per cent of new cars and vans on British roads were classed as ultra-low emissions vehicles by 2020. In a critical report published today, the environmental audit committee said that the UK was “playing catch-up” when it came to the roll-out of electric and plug-in hybrid cars.
Times 1st Sept 2016 read more »
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FT 1st Sept 2016 read more »
The Renewable Energy Association is today calling for greater government ‘carrots’ to encourage the roll-out of battery powered vehicles (BPVs) and other alternatively-fuelled vehicles which have no, or low, carbon emissions. In response to today’s report onSustainability in the Department for Transport by the Environmental Audit Committee of MPs, Clare Wenner, Head of Renewable Transport at the Renewable Energy Association said: “Sustainable transport is essential for the future prosperity of the UK. The economy literally cannot function optimally if our cities are clogged with pollution and our consumers handicapped by poor air quality.
Scottish Energy News 1st Sept 2016 read more »
Climate
Labour has warned Theresa May that the UK must hurry up and ratify the Paris climate deal before the year is out or risk being sidelined in influencing future action on global warming. Writing to the new prime minister, Barry Gardiner said that the Brexit vote in June meant it was also vital that the UK demonstrated its continued commitment to international efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions. The intervention by the shadow secretary of state for energy and climate change comes two days before the US and China are expected to give the Paris agreement a major boost by formally submitting their ratification of the accord with the UN. As the world’s biggest emitters, their ratification would make the prospect of the agreement coming into force before the year’s end much more likely. Donald Trump’s promise to cancel the Paris deal if he won the US election have added urgency to the efforts to formally adopt the deal, which requires countries to curb their emissions to avoid dangerous warming.
Guardian 31st Aug 2016 read more »
