New Nukes
The UK and Ireland Nuclear Free Local Authorities expressed “dismay” yesterday at the Government’s announcement to develop as many as 15 new nuclear power stations. They said it was a “missed opportunity” to develop more sustainable renewable energy alternatives. They pointed out that as recently as 2003, the Government had proposed in a White Paper that nuclear power had no part to play in a future energy mix.
Ekklesia 10th Nov 2009 more >>
Head of Greenpeace’s nuclear campaign, Ben Ayliffe, said: “He can name as many sites as he likes for new nuclear power stations, but the fact remains the figures simply don’t add up. “Even the Thatcher government realised this. It was exactly 20 years ago to the day that they pulled nuclear plants from the energy privatisation scheme when they realised that nuclear power was not an attractive investment for private companies. And it still isn’t. “Our lawyers will be examining this announcement very closely. You can’t justify building more nuclear power stations when there is no solution to radioactive waste and when international regulators are saying there are huge uncertainties surrounding the basic safety of new reactor designs.”
Edie 10th Nov 2009 more >>
The Government’s focus on nuclear power and ‘clean’ coal has been heavily criticised by a leading environmental organisation. The Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management (CIWEM) this morning (November 11) launched an all out attack on plans by energy and climate change secretary, Ed Miliband, which is already the subject of potential legal action by Greenpeace. CIWEM executive director, Nick Reeves, while saying he ‘applauds the Government’s commitment to combat climate change and to ensure energy security’ also believes Britain can meet its targets ‘without building new nuclear power stations’.
Edie 11th Nov 2009 more >>
Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke has said that the government is wrong to back the creation of a number of new nuclear power stations.
Digital Spy 10th Nov 2009 more >>
New Magazine 10th Nov 2009 more >>
NME 10th Nov 2009 more >>
Jeremy Leggett: When I am having a bad day on the frontiers of the solar revolution, I try to imagine being the chief finance officer of British Energy, who will probably be having a much worse day, and indeed, vocational, life. He or she is supposed to raise multiple billions for a new generation of nuclear plants, but a few questions need answering by the owners and likely suppliers first. EDF, owners of British Energy, are majority-owned by the French government, like the French reactor-building company, Areva, which is widely expected to build most or all new British reactors (if they are ever built). I imagine an e-mail from CFO to CEO about these questions.
Green World 10th Nov 2009 more >>
Dieter Helm: Britain faces two urgent energy problems. First, we have simply not invested enough in infrastructure to meet future demand for heat and power. There is a yawning capacity gap that, in the next decade, will force prices up for consumers and industry. The second problem is how to mitigate climate change by cutting carbon emissions. The two problems will need more than £200 billion to fix in the next decade. Driven by the dangerous combination of the Government choosing the winners and lobbyists trying to capture subsidies. For all the good intentions, the result will be high cost and low impact. Instead of starting with the cheapest ways of reducing carbon emissions, Britain has started with the most expensive. So far success has been limited: We not only pay among the highest bills for wind, but in Europe only Cyprus and Malta generate a lower proportion of their electricity from it. Old nuclear is closing, but new nuclear is unlikely to appear much before 2020, and coal will not come to the rescue any time soon. The result is more gas, and, but for the recession, real risks to the security of supply.
Times 11th Nov 2009 more >>
Opposition politicians and campaign groups have called on the government to prioritise renewable energy ahead of developing nuclear plants after it unveiled plans to fast-track planning applications for as many as 10 new nuclear facilities.
New Energy Focus 10th Nov 2009 more >>
The government should focus on all forms of technology, not just nuclear, in order to meet its low carbon targets, according to the Renewable Energy Centre. A spokesperson for the organisation made the claim after energy secretary Ed Miliband set out the draft Nuclear Policy Statement (NPS) yesterday. The draft outlined why nuclear power is important and gave the go-ahead to ten sites across England that are to have nuclear energy stations constructed on them. However, the Renewable Energy Centre urged the government to consider alternative technologies saying it would be “disappointing if nuclear was seen as the solution”.
Low Carbon Economy 10th Nov 2009 more >>
Nuclear power station developers face five big risks: Planning, Construction, Power Price, Operational, and Decommissioning. The government today has sought to limit the Planning risk. While important for encouraging developers to bring forward projects, this is the least important risk financially.
Citi 9th Nov 2009 more >>
You wait 12 years for an energy policy and six come along at once. In an apparent rush of decisiveness Ed Miliband, Climate and Energy Secretary, confirmed 10 sites for new nuclear reactors and a further push to develop clean coal technology.
Telegraph 10th Nov 2009 more >>
Dungeness
Kent MP Michael Howard has vowed to fight the government’s decision to reject Dungeness as a site for one of 10 new nuclear power stations.
BBC 10th Nov 2009 more >>
Dungeness has not made the Government short-list of potential new nuclear power stations.
Kent News 10th Nov 2009 more >>
Cumbria
THREE sites in Cumbria have won government backing for new nuclear power stations. Martin Forwood, who chairs Cumbrians Opposed to a Radioactive Environment (CORE), said: “It is like a death warrant for West Cumbria’s future which has already suffered over 50 years of nuclear domination. These are fine words now but the proof of the pudding will be in 2025 when I think many of these listed sites will fall by the wayside.” While Kirksanton, Braystones and Sellafield have won government backing, one site nominated at Dungeness in Kent, which is already home to an existing power plant, was deemed unsuitable and rejected. Michael Wills, spokesman for the Kirksanton Action Group, which was set up to combat the plan for the village, said: “I am extremely disappointed that Kirksanton has been selected when there are other sites such as Dungeness which have been left off.
NW Evening Mail 10th Nov 2009 more >>
THE north west will be at the centre of a massive expansion in nuclear power. Four of 10 sites for new nuclear power stations earmarked by the government are in the region – including three in Cumbria and one at Heysham in Lancashire.
Manchester Evening News 10th Nov 2009 more >>
Hartlepool
BUSINESS leaders and politicians have greeted with delight news that Hartlepool is on the government’s list of fast-track sites for a new nuclear power station. The massive construction project could bring more than £2.5bn into the regional economy, creating thousands of jobs.
Newcastle Evening Gazette 10th Nov 2009 more >>
Hartlepool Mail 10th Nov 2009 more >>
Hinkley
A new nuclear power station at Hinkley Point has far-reaching consequences for residents in Somerset. Protest groups are fearful of the risks like leaks and radiation levels from the proposed repository and reactors. Local councils, however, see it as an opportunity for new jobs and the chance of major investment.
BBC 10th Nov 2009 more >>
Bridgwater Times 10th Nov 2009 more >>
Bridgwater Mercury 10th Nov 2009 more >>
Somerset County Gazette 10th Nov 2009 more >>
Burnham and Highbridge Weekly News 10th Nov 2009 more >>
Western Morning News 10th Nov 2009 more >>
People in North Somerset have had another chance to comment on a proposed 37-mile overhead pylon route. The power cable route is proposed between the new Hinkley Point C nuclear power station and Avonmouth.
BBC 10th Nov 2009 more >>
A new nuclear power station in Hinkley, Somerset, is a step closer to becoming reality and could be operational within nine years, according to the This is Somerset website. Ten new plants are reportedly being pushed through a “fast-tracked” planning process, to supply up to 25% of the country’s energy needs. Anti-nuclear activists fear that the plants would be a health hazard (a 2005 report saying there was categorically no evidence that living near nuclear power stations increased the rate of childhood cancers has been challenged by German research), and are concerned about their environmental and financial cost. And while there are promises of consultation, there will be no right of veto for local people on big projects. But the plants offer a renewable source of energy and promise to ease unemployment, bringing many highly skilled jobs to the areas in which they are built.
Guardian 10th Nov 2009 more >>
Wylfa
Huw Lewis supports nuclear power and a Seven Barrage. Carwyn Jones supports a second Wylfa nuclear plant on Anglesey. Health Minister Edwina Hart is wary about nuclear power, especially nuclear waste. In her manifesto she says “…only the highest degree of scepticism is sensible”.
BBC 10th Nov 2009 more >>
Anti-nuclear campaigners PAWB (People Against Wylfa B) warned that concerns about nuclear waste had not been addressed. Dr Carl Cowes of PAWB said Holyhead would make a good site for wind, water and solar energy projects, which would create high skilled employment, and added: “The question of nuclear waste has not been answered. Considering that there is no satisfactory solution to the management of our legacy nuclear waste, what sense is there in moving to completely unchartered territory beyond the experience of the British nuclear industry?”
North Wales Chronicle 10th Nov 2009 more >>
Owston Ferry
SITES near Doncaster were secretly examined as a potential site for a new nuclear power station, a minister has revealed. Energy Secretary Ed Miliband surprised MPs when he announced that Owston Ferry had been rejected as a potential new site for a new generation atomic power plant following an independent study.Owston Ferry, along with Druridge Bay in Northumberland and Kingsnoth in Kent were examined after being “identified as worthy of further consideration” by an independent study. However, Mr Miliband said all three had eventually been rejected by the Government. He told the Commons: “It was concluded that all of them have serious impediments and none of them is credible for deployment by the end of 2025, the period of the policy statement, nor do we believe they are necessary for our plans.”
Sheffield Star 10th Nov 2009 more >>
Scotland
THERE IS no need to build new nuclear power stations to meet Scotland’s energy needs, it was claimed yesterday. The Scottish Government came under fire from Labour and Conservative politicians this week after reaffirming its commitment to renewable, green energy sources rather than nuclear power. Scottish Labour leader Iain Gray said the SNP administration’s refusal to build nuclear power stations will cost the country thousands of construction jobs and millions of pounds inward investment. UK energy secretary Ed Miliband announced plans to build 10 nuclear power stations in England and Wales earlier this week.
Dundee Courier 11th Nov 2009 more >>
Daily Record 10th Nov 2009 more >>
Turkey
A Turkish court has stalled the government’s plans to build its first nuclear power plant by ruling as invalid several parts of a tender for the project, the TMMOB industrial body said on Tuesday. Russia’s Inter RAO and Atomstroiexport and Turkey’s Park Teknik won the tender last year to construct and operate the plant, but the consortium has been in protracted negotiations with the government over electricity pricing.
Interactive Investor 10th Nov 2009 more >>
Energy Efficiency
The head of Britain’s climate change watchdog predicted today that households will need to spend up to £15,000 on a full energy efficiency makeover if the government is to meet its ambitious targets for cutting carbon emissions.
Guardian 11th Nov 2009 more >>
Telegraph 11th Nov 2009 more >>
Rich countries are being urged to sign up to a Make Poverty History-style pledge at the climate change summit at Copenhagen next month to bring electricity to the 1.5 billion people in the world without it. The International Energy Agency (IEA) is working with the United Nations and the World Bank on a project to electrify millions of homes and villages in Africa and south Asia.
Guardian 11th Nov 2009 more >>
