North Korea
Russian diplomats believe it is now “highly probable” that North Korea will officially join the nuclear club by carrying out its first underground test of an atomic device. Kim Jong Il, the North Korean leader, is said to have made clear his intention to explode a device during recent talks with Russian and Chinese officials in Pyongyang.
Sunday Telegraph 10th September 2006
BNFL Privatisation
The controversial £400m bid by US engineering giant Fluor for clean-up company British Nuclear Group (BNG) has been rejected by the Government. BNG’s parent company, BNFL, will will now have less influence over how its decommissioning businesses are sold. The Government is understood to have told state-owned BNFL and the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) to formally approve a new sale process for BNG. BNFL and the NDA, which owns the UK’s nuclear sites, had been supposed to run the process by themselves.
Independent on Sunday 10th September 2006
Iran
Russia yesterday hardened its stance towards Iran on the nuclear issue, but still stopped short of calling for UN sanctions without further negotiations.
Independent on Sunday 10th September 2006
Iran’s top nuclear negotiator has said his talks with the EU’s foreign policy chief over Tehran’s nuclear programme have been constructive. The EU’s Javier Solana and Iran’s Ali Larijani will resume their discussions on Sunday, both sides said. The talks may be a last chance to halt moves to hit Tehran with UN sanctions.
Sky 9th Sept 2006
BBC 9th Sept 2006
Terror
NUCLEAR industry officials have agreed to discuss access to “secret” Sizewell B documents following a claim that the public has a right to know the extent of the risk of a terrorist strike. Lack of public access to the documents – on the advice of the security services – was described by a leading environmental consultant yesterday as a “scandal”. Sizewell B, British Energy’s flagship plant, is considered one of the high risk industrial targets for terrorists, although the company insists that the deliberate crashing of an aircraft on to the reactor dome is unlikely to lead to a catastrophic release of radioactivity. However, Pete Wilkinson, who runs a national environmental consultancy from offices at Halesworth, has expressed concern about the vulnerability to terrorist attack of another part of the plant – the concrete and steel-lined “pond” where highly radioactive spent fuel rods are stored. Mr Wilkinson, a member of the Government-appointed Committee on Radioactive Waste Management, has been unable to obtain access to documents assessing the risk of a terrorist strike leading to the loss of the 1,400 tonnes of coolant water.
East Anglian Daily Times 9th Sept 2006
Norway
A Norwegian nuclear reactor was shut down after increased levels of radioactivity were detected. There was no leak beyond the plant.
Sunday Telegraph 10th Sept 2006
