Energy Bill
Ian Marchant: On Tuesday, MPs scrutinising the energy bill sink their teeth into the detail for the first time. The bill is pivotal to the UK’s energy future, and – as we will tell them when we give evidence – a number of serious challenges face the MPs responsible for making it work. Firstly, will the government be able to deliver on all of the responsibilities it is taking on itself? The powers in the bill effectively give government the power to decide which generation technologies are built, at what scale, where, when and by whom. This is a remarkable amount of intervention, basically amounting to public sector procurement. Secondly, does the bill actually support utility investment at a reasonable cost? The UK energy utility sector is investing around £10bn a year and this will need to increase over the next decade by around 50%. On the surface, the proposed contracts for differences (CfDs) seem attractive as they give investors a fixed price for the electricity they generate over the term of the contract. This, of course, depends upon the original price being reasonable (so government must drive a hard bargain on new nuclear with EDF) and this or a future government resisting the political temptation to tamper with the terms of the contracts. But there is a third very serious point related to affordability which is not often mentioned. In the new world envisaged by the bill, suppliers will have to pay monies to a central body so that low carbon generators can be paid for their contracts every month. Effectively, the supplier has to guess the amount of low carbon electricity that will be generated in any given month – largely dependent on weather among other factors – as well as what the wholesale price of electricity will be in that month to work out how much they will need to pay.
Guardian 14th Jan 2013 more »
Radwaste
HALF a million pounds will be spent on protecting the Lake District’s image if councils agree to look for a nuclear waste burial site in West Cumbria. The Government has earmarked the £500,000 for a nationwide advertising campaign on top of £3.25 million already spent by the Department of Energy on the repository process, The Whitehaven News can reveal. Another opinion poll is also likely to be held, this time into how a deep underground repository in the area would affect perception of the wider public. It all depends now on whether Cumbria County Council’s cabinet, along with the Copeland and Allerdale council executives, agree to a West Cumbria site investigation. If they vote ‘yes’ at their meetings on January 30, the government has set money aside to launch the nationwide advertising campaign over a six-month period. Without necessarily mentioning a repository in the advertising, the aim would be to enhance Cumbria and its brand.
Whitehaven News 11th Jan 2013 more »
Correspondence between Cumbria Tourism and Radiation Free Lakeland. All our futures including the Norwegians and the Irish depend on the Sellafield wastes being looked after safely. Key to this is Cumbria Tourism stepping up to the mark and saying No to the dump.
Radiation Free Lakeland 14th Jan 2013 more »
Scientists in France have reported a new autotrophic green microalgae called Coccomyxa actinabiotis nov. sp., isolated from a radioactive nuclear site, which is extremely radioresistant (most “normal” organisms are killed by the radioactivity) and strongly accumulates radionuclides, including 238U, 137Cs, 110mAg, 60Co, 54Mn, 65Zn and 14C. In 1 hour, the microalga was as effective as the conventional physico-chemical ion-exchangers to purify nuclear effluents. It could be used to complement existing decontamination protocols in industry and also for the clean-up of accidentally contaminated water.
Bionity 15th Jan 2013 more »
EDF
EDF Energy, a UK-based energy supplier, has reported a 60 Terawatt hours (TWh) electricity output from its eight British nuclear power plants, achieving their highest output for seven years in 2012. The latest output from the nuclear stations is almost 50% higher than the output in 2011, and it is enough to power half of the homes in the country.
Energy Business Review 15th Jan 2013 more »
Electricite de France SA (EDF.FR) said Monday that output from its U.K. nuclear power stations increased last year to the highest level since 2005, citing capital investment levels as the key driver behind the rise.
Wall St Journal 14th Jan 2013 more »
Bloomberg 14th Jan 2013 more »
Utility Week 14th Jan 2013 more »
Sizewell
NUCLEAR bosses are investigating how a small amount of dilute sulphuric acid ended up in a fuel storage pond. The incident happened at Sizewell A power station, which is run by Magnox Ltd and is currently being decomissioned. The Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) have said they are happy with the way the incident has been handled and confirmed it posed no risk to public safety. The dilute sulphuric acid was discovered in the fuel storage pond at Sizewell A on December 20. Over time it is understood this could have caused the casing on the outside of the fuel rods to erode.
East Anglian Daily Times 11th Jan 2013 more »
AN emergency response agency is standing by proposed safety procedures for the Sizewell nuclear site despite scepticism from a former radiation safety specialist. Barrie Skelcher, a retired Sizewell A health physicist, sought to discredit plans to issue anti-radiation pills if proposals are approved for a new twin reactor. He also labelled the Suffolk Resilience Forum’s proposed 4km emergency planning zone around the Sizewell site “quite arbitrary”, arguing for a technical assessment of the maximum amount of radioactivity released in the event of a credible accident. But Suffolk’s current head of public protection said the proposals, which address the risk of a major accident at Sizewell, were based on national and global guidelines.
East Anglian Daily Times 14th Jan 2013 more »
Sellafield
Having received an anonymous letter regarding laundry from Sellafield being outsourced to Lillyhall, RaFL did a fact check. We researched Public Sector Tenders and found that Shortridge Laundry has indeed been awarded a 50,000 to 600,000GBP contract for towels and workwear. Having checked out that the anonymous letter has truth in it, Tim Farron and the Environment Agency were contacted and a blog posted. Shortridge tell us that they have been washing Sellafield laundry for 4 years on a contingency basis i.e. when the power is insufficient (from Fellside Gas power station) at Sellafield, the washing is outsourced. Highly Active work wear and towels go to Wales and the Non Active laundry of towels and underwear goes to Shortridge at Lillyhall. Shortridge do not have a discharge license or any means of monitoring the laundry once it reaches them, relying wholly on Sellafield to monitor and we know that they always get it right!
Radiation Free Lakeland 14th Jan 2013 more »
Magnox
The UK Nuclear Decommissioning Authority has confirmed that four organisations are set to embark on the next phase of the £7 billion ($12bn) competition to run 12 historic UK nuclear sites. Reactor Site Solutions (Bechtel, EnergySolutions); The Babcock Fluor Partnership; CAS Restoration Partnership (CH2M Hill, Areva, Serco) and AMEC/Atkins are all set to enter the dialogue phase in the competition for ownership of Magnox Ltd and Research Sites Restoration Ltd (RSRL). Following the dialogue phase, which begins in February, the NDA will issue an invitation to submit final tenders. The competition, one of the UK’s largest public procurements, is scheduled for completion in 2014, NDA said in a statement. Magnox Ltd is currently owned by EnergySolutions and RSRL is owned by Babcock International Group.
Nuclear Engineering International 14th Jan 2013 more »
Companies
Sale of part of ScottishPower network scrapped under disposal programme.
Scotsman 15th Jan 2013 more »
Telegraph 14th Jan 2013 more »
Uranium
ARMZ is to acquire full control of Toronto’s Uranium One, as Russia’s uranium monopoly consolidates its grip on the market in the wake of the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster. A Uranium One shareholder and subsidiary of Russian state-owned nuclear operator Rosatom, ARMZ said it had agreed to pay $1.3bn to acquire the 49 per cent of the listed company that it does not own and take it private.
FT 14th Jan 2013 more »
IAEA
The IAEA is supposed to establish international standards on nuclear safety — on protecting humans from radiological risk, preventing accidents, preparing emergency action plans. But because the IAEA’s statute makes it dependent on its member states, the agency often has to settle for the lowest common denominator.
Middle East Online 14th Jan 2013 more »
US
Depicts 67,000 mushroom clouds, equal to the number of metric tons of ultra-radioactive uranium/plutonium waste being stored in temporary pools at the 104 nuclear power plants across the U.S. These waste pools must be cooled with hundreds of thousands of gallons of constantly circulating water, and many plants have inadequate or nonexistent backup cooling systems in case of power loss. In the U.S. and around the world, the waste pools are under-protected, over-filled, and vulnerable to earthquakes, storms, malfeasance, and human error. In 1997 the Brookhaven National Laboratory estimated that a calamity at just one of these waste pools in the U.S. could cause 138,000 American deaths (more than the number of Japanese who died in the 1945 bombing of Hiroshima), and contaminate 2,000 square miles of our land.
Chris Jordan 14th Jan 2013 more »
A lawyer for Vermont on Monday urged a U.S. appeals court to reverse a ruling preventing the state from shutting down a nuclear power plant owned by Entergy Corp.Last year, a U.S. district court judge ruled that the state could not close the 620-megawatt Vermont Yankee plant because federal regulators, not the state, had authority over safety concerns.
Reuters 14th Jan 2013 more »
America will begin again this year on a program to store its used reactor fuel and military wastes. This time the siting process will be based on attaining the consent of a host community.
World Nuclear News 14th Jan 2013 more »
UAE
The UAE and Argentina signed on Monday an agreement to cooperate in the field of peaceful nuclear energy during a visit by President Cristina Kirchner, the state news agency WAM reported.
Middle EAst Online 14th Jan 2013 more »
Poland
WorleyParsons has been selected to provide site characterization and licensing/permitting services for the Poland’s first nuclear power plant. Polish utility PGE announced the PLN252 million ($82 million) contract award on 9 January, following the conclusion of a competitive tender. The site and environmental surveys will last over two years, PGE said in a statement. They will cover a variety of elements including geological conditions, natural environment, current land development, as well as logistics and infrastructure.
Nuclear Engineering International 14th Jan 2013 more »
Iran
Iran could produce enough weapon-grade uranium for one or more nuclear bombs by mid-2014, and the United States and its allies should intensify sanctions on Tehran before that point is reached, a report by a group of U.S. nonproliferation experts said.
Reuters 14th Jan 2013 more »
North Korea
North Korea vowed on Monday to strengthen its defences amid concerns the country may conduct a nuclear test as a follow-up to last month’s long-range rocket launch.
Telegraph 14th Jan 2013 more »
Independent 14th Jan 2013 more »
Scotsman 14th Jan 2013 more »
Renewables
RenewableUK, the trade and professional body representing the wind and marine energy sector, has welcomed the publication of the Government’s Call for Views for its Industrial Strategy, which identifies the offshore wind industry as a major engine of economic growth in Britain.
Renewable UK 14th Jan 2013 more »
Investment in clean energy projects dipped 11 per cent last year, according to new figures from Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF), which confirmed the $268.7bn invested still made 2012 the second most successful year on record for the global clean energy sector.
Guardian 14th Jan 2013 more »
Lack of clarity in government energy policy is causing “high levels of concern” among UK manufacturing chiefs, according to a survey by US industrial giant GE. The survey, of 400 senior executives from high tech manufacturing, found 84 per cent of respondents doubted the affordability of the policy; 62 per cent saw a threat to security of supply; while 46 per cent were concerned about carbon emissions. Almost half of those surveyed anticipated energy price shocks and were considering investment in onsite generation and improvements in energy efficiency. Insulation and solar PV were top of the wish list. Two thirds of respondents who had noticed an impact from energy policy said it had been detrimental to their business.
Utility Week 15th Jan 2013 more »
Green Alliance director Matthew Spencer and low carbon expert Paul Arwas reveal in this pamphlet why cleantech innovation is faltering in the UK and warn of the risks to UK business success. They set out a four step plan for a longer term and more focused approach to ensure the UK can fulfil its promise to be a leader in the cleantech industrial revolution. They warn that without decisive action the UK risks losing its next generation of cleantech enterprises, importing more technology and paying too much to decarbonise.
Green Alliance 14th Jan 2013 more »
Energy Efficiency
The Chancellors decision in the Autumn statement to ‘simplify’ the Carbon Reduction Commitment was a decision that underpins a wider view that Treasury now takes towards all things low carbon.The stealthy but complete evisceration of the CRC is a minor scandal, especially since its whole purpose and design has now been removed except for the ‘pay up’ bit of it, which was never supposed to be a revenue raiser in the first place.
Alan Whitehead MP 14th Jan 2013 more »
Fuel Poverty
As Britain faces the next temperature drop, sixteen thousand families are struggling to stay warm. ITV Daybreak exclusively revealed this morning that of the £100 million set aside by the Government for the Warm Front Scheme, which aims to provide money for boilers and insulation, only half of the money had been handed out. The initiative ends this Saturday, 22,000 people applied for the scheme in total.
ITV 15th Jan 2013 more »
