Hinkley
The Nuclear Free Local Authorities (NFLA) notes with interest an article in The Times which reports more serious delays in the financing and control of the Hinkley Point C proposed nuclear reactor in Somerset. The Times reports that the two Chinese utilities proposed to put around 40% of the financing into Hinkley Point C – China General Nuclear Power Corporation and the China National Nuclear Power Corporation – are balking at providing such support unless they get guarantees from the French Government that it will bail out the ailing nuclear utility Areva, who would build the reactor for EDF Energy. NFLA calls on all political parties to consider the profound impact of these delays and start to think about radical changes of direction in UK energy policy. This would involve developing a wide renewable energy mix, promoting more comprehensive energy efficiency programmes, and taking forward the positive developments around more definitive local authority energy policies and community microgeneration opportunities. NFLA also commends politicians to read the Vienna Ombuds-Office report comparing the costs of renewable energy and nuclear power in the UK and across the EU. This report emphasises the need for an urgent change of policy towards a renewables revolution.
NFLA 9th Feb 2015 read more »
A final investment deal for the Hinkley Point new nuclear project could be delayed to as late as October this year due to negotiations between EDF and its Chinese project partner.
Utility Week 9th Feb 2015 read more »
EDF has denied reports that its investment decision will be delayed until the Autumn. Stop Hinkley spokesperson Allan Jeffrey said: “Any further guarantees being sought by the Chinese Companies or EDF energy would need to be notified to the European Competition Commissioner. We also know that the financial arrangements for dealing with radioactive waste have still not been notified to the Commission. The whole project appears to be unravelling before our eyes”. “And yet as nuclear costs escalate the cost of renewable energy is falling rapidly. For instance the £160bn invested in clean energy across the globe last year paid for almost twice the clean electricity it would have done three years earlier.” “It’s time EDF admitted defeat. Somerset should turn its attention to building a local economy which can take advantage of advances in renewable energy and energy efficiency before it’s too late”.
Burnham-on-sea.com 10th Feb 2015 read more »
Sellafield
A consortium comprised of the German M+W Group and the UK’s James Fisher Nuclear has won a £150 million (€190 million) contract for the development of a nuclear waste storage facility at the Sellafield nuclear site in Cumbria, northwest England. Stuttgart-based M+W Group said in a statement that the contract, awarded by Sellafield Ltd, the company that manages and operates the site, includes the engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning of a nuclear waste import and storage facility which will be designed and built especially for the Sellafield site. The project, called the Box Encapsulation Plant Product Store Direct Import Facility, will provide the capability to transfer and store contained intermediate-level waste (ILW). The statement said the facility, scheduled for completion in 2017, will play an integral part in the long-term plan to reduce the hazard on the Sellafield site.
Nucnet 5th Feb 2015 read more »
Right from the start, ROVs have been designed to get into places where it’s impractical or impossible to place a human being. And no man-made environment needs them more than a nuclear reactor. Steve Phelps of Rovtech Solutions told MJ that remotely operated vessels were first used in 1984 to survey the damage from the – then Windscale – original 1950s pile fire and radioactive leak which led to its eventual closure. It set a precedent, he explained. After this ROVs became Sellafield’s “underwater eyeballs” that allowed a look around several storage ponds. Rovtech has supplied nine ROVs for Sellafield’s decommissioning process: these have, over the last three or four years, helped to move and reclassify several tonnes of radioactive material. However, it became obvious quite early on “that usability is a lot more important than high end tech” he said.
Maritime Journal 9th Jan 2015 read more »
Nuclear Safety
During the 1960s when the American Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards debated containment structures, some members argued for the need to make stronger containments. Regrettably, a majority of the members believed that the emergency core cooling systems were adequate, so more than 50 years ago the Advisory Committee ignored its minority members and pushed ahead without rigorous failure-proof containment structures and systems. The Nuclear Regulatory Committee made the decision not to require stronger containments. Japan followed the American lead.
Fairwinds 29th Jan 2015 read more »
The United States has derailed a proposal to toughen nuclear safety standards by amending a global atomic treaty, diplomats said, with opponents of the move arguing it would get mired in lengthy parliamentary ratification. Months of wrangling about the future of the 77-nation Convention on Nuclear Safety (CNS) culminated at a Vienna meeting diplomats feared could expose divisions over safety standards four years after the Fukushima disaster in Japan. Switzerland had put forward a proposal to amend the CNS, arguing stricter standards could help avoid a repeat of Fukushima, where an earthquake and tsunami sparked triple nuclear meltdowns, forced more than 160,000 people to flee nearby towns and contaminated water, food and air.
Reuters 9th Feb 2015 read more »
Japan Times 10th Feb 2015 read more »
Radwaste
Cumbria Trust advisor Prof. David Smyth has drawn our attention to planning legal expert Angus Walker’s blog, where on the 26th January he posted the following: N.B. Interestingly, the post specifically mentions CUMBRIA. Earlier this month, the Infrastructure Planning (Radioactive Waste Geological Disposal Facilities) Order 2015 was laid before Parliament. This will extend the Planning Act 2008 regime to a 17th type of nationally significant infrastructure project (NSIP).
Cumbria Trust 10th Feb 2015 read more »
Waste Transport
A north MSP will discuss the movement of nuclear waste from Caithness to Cumbria at a public meeting tonight. John Finnie will express concern about the decision to transport radioactive fuels around the north coastline from Dounreay to Sellafield. He will speak at a meeting of campaign group Highlands Against Nuclear Transport at Dingwall Community Centre this evening.
Press & Journal 9th Feb 2015 read more »
The Nuclear Free Local Authorities (NFLA) notes with concern three recent incidents – one at sea, one on rail and one by road – which highlight why it remains concerned about the ongoing transportation of radioactive materials in the UK. The management company of the cargo ship Cemfjord – which recently sank off the Orkney Islands with the tragic loss of eight lives – has indicated it was probably caused by severe storms. Cemfjord was a 272 ft (83m) bulk cement carrier and was bound for Runcorn in Cheshire. A report in The Scotsman notes that it has emerged that the Cemfjord was also involved in an incident in July 2014 when it was grounded off Denmark. In this earlier incident, the Russian captain of the vessel was found to have excessive levels of alcohol in his blood and was dismissed. The company said that, in this previous incident no-one was injured, and there was no pollution. For the NFLA this tragic incident has some parallels with the fire that affected the MV Parida off the Pentland Firth in October 2014, which was transporting low level radioactive waste from Dounreay to Belgium. Fortunately, in this incident no one was hurt and the vessel, adrift for several hours, was brought back to shore. It also got into difficulty during a period of severe storms. Last Friday, the Highland rail network was completely suspended following the derailment of a freight train near Georgemas Junction in Caithness – a location where Dounreay rail transports travel through. Fortunately, in this incident the train is understood to have been travelling at a slow speed when the derailment occurred, and there were no injuries. However, rail services travelling between Inverness and Wick had to be cancelled until the evening. NFLA postulates what may occur if a train containing radioactive materials is affected by such a derailment at a higher speed. It is also concerned as to whether such rail transports are vulnerable to a malicious attack on the remoter areas of the rail network.
NFLA 9th Feb 2015 read more »
EDF
EDF lied. December 31, 2014, the dilapidated reactor No. 4 of the Tricastin EDF nuclear power plant began an emergency stop (scram) after a restart attempt. A degassing accompanied by a huge plume of smoke followed the deafening sounds of whistles and bangs. The blast was heard up to 12 km beyond the nuclear site. While the independent organization “Next Up” revealed that its measures showed releases of radioactivity in the air, EDF argued hand on heart that it was not. Today, EDF publicly admit that he lied: yes there has been radioactive releases. Tritium … and maybe other radioactive contaminants.
Co-ordination Antinucleaire Sudest 9th Feb 2015 read more »
Areva
French nuclear group Areva could post a loss last year of more than 3 billion euros (£2.22 billion) and is considering asset sales, French weekly newspaper Le Journal Dimanche (JDD) said. Last week Areva said it expected to book significantly higher provisions and writedowns on assets in its 2014 accounts. “The losses deepened in the second half,” the JDD quoted a source close to the company as saying. “They will be more than 3 billion euros for the year.” A spokesman for Areva declined to comment on the report. Analysts on average expect the company to report a net loss of 1.14 billion euros, which compared with a net profit in 2013 of 192 million euros, according to Thomson Reuters data.
Reuters 9th Feb 2015 read more »
Opinion Polls
More than a quarter of British adults would switch political allegiances in May if their party of choice ditched their commitments to tackling climate change, according to a new ComRes poll published today. The survey of more than 2,000 people carried out at the start of this month also shows younger Conservative Party supporter.
Business Green 9th Feb 2015 read more »
Chernobyl
Fallout from the world’s worst nuclear accident just won’t go away. Radioactive clouds may once again spread over Europe, as rising fires release radiation locked up in the upper layers of soil in the dense forests near Chernobyl in Ukraine and Belarus Forest fires there have already been re-distributing that radioactivity over Europe. But the situation is set to worsen with climate change, political instability – and a bizarre effect of radiation on dead leaves. Most forests are managed by removing dead trees, clearing roads or cutting fire breaks but this isn’t being done here. Moreover, dead vegetation that fuels fires is accumulating at a rate that has doubled since 1986.
New Scientist 9th Feb 2015 read more »
Daily Mail 9th Feb 2015 read more »
US – Radwaste
Generally speaking, any viable solution for used nuclear fuel deserves attention. The Blue Ribbon Commission went for interim storage units and a permanent repository, aiming to avoid the kerfluffle over Yucca Mountain by suggesting that these sites be consent-based – that is, the federal government and/or interested operators get the site approved by local communities and states. This process wasn’t used in choosing Yucca Mountain back in the 80s and look where that got us. Opposing the repository became as much an article of political faith in Nevada as protecting the Chesapeake Bay is in Maryland, with no particular partisan difference. But that’s not the end of the story. The release of the final two volumes of the Safety Evaluation Report for the Yucca Mountain project, which was court-ordered, found Yucca Mountain a sound choice for a repository. Hands in the air for Yucca Mountain! But actually using the site, although dictated by the Nuclear Waste Act, is still up to the federal government and the Obama administration has shown little interest in pursuing it. As long as Nevada’s four electoral votes remain important in Presidential politics, thus will it (probably) be for the foreseeable future.
NEI Nuclear Notes 9th Feb 2015 read more »
Australia
The announcement this week of a Royal Commission into the nuclear industry in South Australia has raised both stakes and eyebrows around the nation. Many South Australian politicians have been enamoured with the economic allure of nuclear power. After all, the world’s biggest mining company sits atop the world’s largest uranium deposit at BHP Billiton’s Olympic Dam mine, 500km north of Adelaide. But opening the door to talk of uranium enrichment, domestic nuclear power and international nuclear waste is a major escalation in radioactive rhetoric.
Guardian 10th Feb 2015 read more »
The state of South Australia is to carry out an in-depth investigation into its future role in the nuclear fuel cycle in a first-of-a-kind Royal Commission. Announcing the commission, state premier Jay Weatherill said it would create the foundations for further discussions within the community. “The Royal Commission will be the first of its kind in the nation and will explore the opportunities and risks of South Australia’s involvement in the mining, enrichment, energy and storage phases for the peaceful use of nuclear energy,” he said.
World Nuclear News 9th Feb 2015 read more »
Iran
Barack Obama said on Monday there was no reason to extend nuclear talks with Iran once again, stressing the question now is whether Tehran truly wants an agreement. “I don’t see a further extension being useful if they have not agreed to the basic formulation and the bottom line that the world requires to have confidence that they’re not pursuing a nuclear weapon,” the US president said at a joint press conference with visiting German chancellor Angela Merkel.
Guardian 9th Feb 2015 read more »
Reuters 9th Feb 2015 read more »
Argentina
CHINA and the Argentinean government are building a pair of nuclear plants in the South American country, at an estimated cost of almost US$13bn. According to the state-backed China Daily news service, the two countries have agreed to appoint China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) to run the joint project, which will use Chinese ACP1000 technology.
Chemical Engineer 9th Feb 2015 read more »
Trident
It is Friday, May 8. The acting leader of the Labour party has been called to the palace to be asked to form a coalition with the couple of dozen of SNP MPs, a handful of Plaid Cymru members and Greens and the splintered remnants of the fractured Liberal Democrats. The news is a disaster for BAE Systems Maritime. It could be a catastrophe for the town of Barrow-in-Furness. If, as is entirely plausible, a minority Labour government is returned at the general election leading a coalition of the left, one of the prices for the support of the marginal parties would likely be the scrapping of the Trident nuclear deterrent – or at least a long pause in its commissioning. If that is the case, more than a decade spent rebuilding the fortunes of the submarine shipyard in the Cumbrian town of Barrow, in a BAE division employing about 7,000 people, could begin to fall apart.
Times 9th Feb 2015 read more »
Nuclear Weapons
Disarmament campaigners say they will appeal a US Federal Court ruling that a Marshall Islands’ nuclear lawsuit against the United States has no grounds. Last year, the Marshallese government filed unprecedented lawsuits in the International Court of Justice and US Federal Court against nine nuclear-armed countries. It argued that the nuclear powers – the United States, Russia, Britain, France, China, Israel, India, Pakistan and North Korea – were in “flagrant violation of international law” for failing to disarm.
ABC 9th Feb 2015 read more »
Renewables – wind
An onshore wind farm on Shetland, which is expected to be one of the most productive in the world, has been cleared for go ahead after the final legal challenge was dismissed. The UK Supreme Court in London dismissed the appeal by Sustainable Shetland, judging that there was insufficient reason to stop the 103-turbine project. The 370MW development, which has the potential to power more than 175,000 homes and could bring in £30 million annual income to the local community, was first approved in 2012. The group Sustainable Shetland which brought the legal challenges claimed it could threaten populations of the endangered whimbrel while also have a damaging visual impact.
Scottish Energy News 10th Feb 2015 read more »
Plans for a 370MW wind farm in Shetland look set to be back on track, after Supreme Court judges today threw out a case from local campaigners who believed the turbines would harm migratory birds. Viking Energy had secured planning permission from the Scottish government in 2012 and hoped to complete the project by next year. But the project has been in doubt since Sustainable Shetland launched a legal challenge against the Scottish government decision.
Business Green 9th Feb 2015 read more »
BBC 9th Feb 2015 read more »
Guardian 9th Feb 2015 read more »
Herald 10th Feb 2015 read more »
NEW FIGURES on wind energy have shown that wind turbines supplied enough energy to power 3,5m households last month alone. Analysts from WWF Scotland have pointed an increased of over a quarter compared to January last year. Wind turbines alone provided an estimated 1,307,629MWh of electricity to the National Grid, enough to supply, on average, the electrical needs of 146% of Scottish households- or 3.5 million homes. This positive figures mean an increase of 27% compared to January 2014, when wind energy provided 1,033,130MWh.
Deadline News 9th Feb 2015 read more »
Renewables – solar
Solar provider Kingspan Energy has installed Ireland’s largest rooftop solar PV system on a manufacturing plant in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The 4,800 module system will generate 1.1GW of electricity a year, meeting 30% of the energy requirements of the plant.
Edie 9th Feb 2015 read more »
Renewables – Tidal
British engineering companies will play a major role in producing the huge turbines which will generate environmentally friendly energy in a ground-breaking £1bn project to harness the power of the tide. Tidal Lagoon Power’s plan to build a huge lagoon in Swansea Bay which generates power from the movement of the sea has announced a General Electric-Andritz Hydro consortium as the winner of a £300m contract to build the 16 turbines the scheme will use. As part of the contract, GE and Andritz, which are headquartered in the US and Austria respectively, have committed to produce majority of the turbines’ major components in the UK, along with all of the generators they contain. The generators, the highest value component of the turbines, will be built at GE’s plant in Rugby.
Telegraph 10th Feb 2015 read more »
Energy Efficiency
Straw panels have been used to build seven eco-homes in Bristol in a first for a low-cost and fuel efficient building material which promises to reduce heating bills by 90% over that of brick-built housing. The new Modcell factory-built straw panels, going on sale this week, have been developed with the University of Bath’s department of architecture and civil engineering.
Edie 9th Feb 2015 read more »
Energy consumption in the European Union has fallen to levels last seen more than two decades ago, statistics published on Monday showed. The dramatic drop in annual consumption – in 2013, the year to which the new research applies, it was down by more than 9% from its 2006 peak – reflects in part the continuing economic troubles in the eurozone, but also efforts taken by member states and businesses to cut energy use and improve efficiency. Despite the plunge, Europe remains heavily dependent on fuel imports, with more than half of energy needs supplied by production from abroad, including the Middle East and Norway. Under oil prices at the time, that amounted to a cost of more than £297bn in imports in the year in question, but that figure is now volatile owing to the effects of a sharply lower oil price and the exchange rate of the Euro.
Guardian 9th Feb 2015 read more »
Power 1 Group, a Paisley-based electrical and communications specialist, has secured a £9million order to upgrade street lighting in north-east England. The two-year contract to carry out the installation of 46,000 LED luminaires for main contractor GallifordTry builds upon the successful installation of 22,000 luminaires in Salford, Greater Manchester which was the first retrofit project of its kind in the UK. That £1.5m contract was awarded in 2012 and ends next month.
Herald 10th Feb 2015 read more »
Fossil Fuels
As the world’s nations prepare to reach binding agreements on climate change this year in Paris, one of the foremost thoughts in political leaders’ minds must – or should – be how to respond to the fact that in order to avoid catastrophe, humanity cannot extract more than about a third of proven fossil fuel reserves. According to scientific evidence, the larger proportion of reserves must be left underground if we are to keep global warming below a 2C rise by 2100. This means that nations must make two critically important decisions: 1 how much carbon each nation is allowed to emit and 2 which reserves are to be exploited and which are not. The world has some experience with the first decision, but none with the second. Yet we don’t have to start from scratch.
Guardian 9th Feb 2015 read more »
