Hinkley
A furious row has broken out between a council and developers which could potentially see the authority unrepresented at planning hearings for the first of Britain’s new nuclear plants. The row is over the cost of scrutinising the massive planning application for Hinkley C power station in Somerset. Unless it is resolved, Sedgemoor District Council says it will not have the information to assess EDF Energy’s proposals and there could be empty chairs at Infrastructure Planning Commission hearings. The council adjourned its council tax setting meeting yesterday, saying EDF had failed to confirm that it will fund the £2.3 million which Sedgemoor says it and West Somerset need to research, gather evidence and present arguments to the commission. The sum would also cover some legal costs accrued by Somerset County Council.
Western Daily Press 15th Feb 2012 more >>
Sedgemoor DC wants EDF to pay £2m towards the cost of its scrutiny of the impact of the proposed £10bn Hinkley Point C power station. The council argued that it is legally required to undertake the scrutiny to produce a local impact report demanded under the Infrastructure Planning Commissions (IPC) planning consent procedure. Council tax revenue should not be used as the project is of national benefit and importance and is being built by a commercial, profit-making company, a council statement said. It said EDF had previously funded this work but had not confirmed how much it would contribute for the IPC stage of the process despite protracted negotiations.
Local Government Chronicle 15th Feb 2012 more >>
Laing ORourke hires nuclear power consultant and ex Scottishpower construction chief Roger Seshan as the £1bn Hinkley C civils contract battle with Balfour Beatty/Vinci and Costain/McAlpine culminates.
Construction News 15th Feb 2012 more >>
In a stunning surprise move, members of SWAN and others have announced they are legally squatting under Section 6 of the Criminal Law Act 1977. They are in the yard of an old farm building to the west 0f the Hinkley Point main gate which can be reached on the public right of way footpath approx 10 mins walk from the layby on the main road nearest to the station. This building has to be demolished as part of site clearance so by staying on site they are stopping EDF progress, well done them!! The building has bats, and they have a bat expert in the group and are keeping quiet at night so as not to disturb them.
South West Against Nuclear 12th Feb 2012 more >>
Campaign group South-West Against Nuclear want to stop the government’s plans for a ‘nuclear renaissance’ beginning in Hinkley Point in Somerset. Nuclear, activists say, is plagued by problems from beginning to end.
Ecologist 15th Feb 2012 more >>
Wylfa
A NEW group opposed to plans for a holiday village at Penrhos nature reserve plans is to hold mass protests against the development. They say the plans, which also include a housing development at Kingsland and accommodation for Wylfa B construction workers at Cae Glas, could create 600 jobs and pump £5m annually into the local economy.
Holyhead & Anglesey Mail 15th Feb 2012 more >>
Sizewell
A report from Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) sets out the assessment of the treated pond water leak that occurred at the Magnox Limited Sizewell A site on 3 September 2011, the resultant enforcement decision, and related information.
Nuclear Matters 15th Feb 2012 more >>
Areva
US industry forum the Next Generation Nuclear Plant Industry Alliance (NGNP Industry Alliance) has selected the Areva Generation IV high temperature gas cooled reactor (HTGR) concept as the optimum design for next generation nuclear plants.
Nuclear Engineering International 15th Feb 2012 more >>
Stress Tests
The stress tests carried out on Europe’s nuclear power plants in the wake of the Fukushima disaster last year have already brought “important wins”, especially in terms of transparency, says Greenpeace nuclear expert Jan Haverkamp. Speaking to EurActiv. in an interview, he also said the tests had exposed some “black holes” in the emergency responses that need to be addressed. Jan Haverkamp is a nuclear policy expert at Greenpeace, the environmental NGO.
Euractiv 16th Feb 2012 more >>
Euractiv 16th Feb 2012 more >>
Radhealth
In the latest development in the debate over to what extent there is a link between childhood leukaemia and radiation from nuclear power plants, a French study has found a doubling in the incidence of the disease among children under 5 living within 5-kilometre radius of a nuclear plant. COMARE’s Secretariat, Dr Kerry Broom, said that it is aware of the French INSERM study and will be discussing it at the next COMARE meeting in March.
Ecologist 15th Feb 2012 more >>
Radwaste
A decision looms on whether – and where – to build the UK’s first deep disposal for nuclear waste. Two borough councils in Cumbria have ‘volunteered’ – but can the communities be convinced?
Ecologist 15th Feb 2012 more >>
Supply Chain
A TEESSIDE engineering company has unveiled a Nuclear Exhibition Centre as it gears up for more work in the sector. Lord Hutton of Furness, the former Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, cut the ribbon for Darchem Engineerings new facility, which bosses hope will showcase the companys prowess in the expanding nuclear market.
Journal 15th Feb 2012 more >>
South Yorkshire firms are being urged to seize the opportunity to dominate the UK civil nuclear supply sector. Alan Cumming, who is commercial director for EDF Energys nuclear new build programme in the UK, says local industry will be in an even stronger position if it takes full advantage of having the Nuclear Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre on its doorstep. Speaking ahead of next months Global Manufacturing Festival in Sheffield at which he will give a keynote address Mr Cumming revealed that EDF Energy is to host a series of Supplier Days at the Nuclear AMRC.
Sheffield Star 15th Feb 2012 more >>
Chernobyl
FAMILIES are being recruited to temporarily home two children from Belarus whove been affected by the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. A group of youngsters aged between ten and 12 are visiting Selby district during the summer, and representatives from the Chernobyl Childrens Project are looking for families to home the final two.
South Yorkshire Times 16th Feb 2012 more >>
Fast Reactor Research
A European project is to investigate the manufacture of novel nuclear fuels that are safer and more efficient. The ultimate aim is to make nuclear power more sustainable through the use of fourth-generation reactor designs in combination with a coherent re-use and recycling strategy. The 9.4m (£7.9m) FP7 ASGARD project is led by Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden, with input from UK researchers at the National Nuclear Laboratory (NNL) and several universities.
Engineer 15th Feb 2012 more >>
Nuclear Security
The 15th Feburary marked the official launch ceremony of the 2012 Seoul Nuclear Security Summit, South Korea. The Korean National Police Agency launched a security squad, exclusively established for the successful hosting of the 2012 Seoul Nuclear Security Summit which will be held in Seoul from March 26-27, 2012.
Telegraph 15th Feb 2012 more >>
Telegraph 15th Feb 2012 more >>
Iran
Iran proclaimed advances in nuclear know-how on Wednesday, including new centrifuges able to enrich uranium much faster, a move that may hasten a drift towards confrontation with the West over suspicions it is seeking the means to make atomic bombs.
Reuters 15th Feb 2012 more >>
Iran has begun loading domestically-made nuclear fuel rods into its research reactor in a defiant response to toughening sanctions over its controversial nuclear programme.
Press & Journal 16th Feb 2012 more >>
Daily Mail 16th Feb 2012 more >>
Telegraph 15th Feb 2012 more >>
Guardian 15th Feb 2012 more >>
Separately, the Fars agency reported that a new generation of Iranian centrifuges had started operation at the countrys main uranium enrichment facility at Natanz in central Iran. State TV showed the father of Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, killed in January, clicking on the computer to inaugurate the advanced centrifuges, as the scientists mother and widow stood by with tears in their eyes.
Scotsman 16th Feb 2012 more >>
A boastful Iran declared yesterday that it had made important new advances in its nuclear sector, compounding its confrontation with the US and its allies, including Israel, and further risking a military response.
Independent 16th Feb 2012 more >>
Express 16th Feb 2012 more >>
In a letter from chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili to EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, Iran said it was ready for “dialogue on a spectrum of various issues which can provide ground for constructive and forward looking cooperation”.
Telegraph 15th Feb 2012 more >>
“Iran has enough low-enriched material for four weapons-worth – if further enriched. But if they went to further enrich it, the inspectors would find out, the world would know and we would be at war. I don’t think Iran will take that step – at least not in this year, but it’s getting closer.”
Channel 4 News 15th Feb 2012 more >>
Saudi Arabia
January’s signing of an agreement between China and Saudi Arabia excited much attention in the Chinese media, though this was just the latest in a series of similar such legal framework deals that the Middle Eastern Kingdom had signed with a variety of nuclear technology supplier nations including France, Argentina and South Korea. Like the other deals, the Riyadh-Beijing agreement is for peaceful use nuclear technology and covers the maintenance and development of nuclear power plants and research reactors as well as the manufacturing and supply of nuclear fuel elements.
Nuclear Energy Insider 15th Feb 2012 more >>
Japan
In surprisingly frank public testimony on Wednesday, Japans nuclear safety chief said the countrys regulations were fundamentally flawed and laid out a somber picture of a nuclear industry shaped by freewheeling power companies, toothless regulators and a government more interested in promoting nuclear energy than in safeguarding the health of its citizens.
New York Times 15th Feb 2012 more >>
Japan Today 16th Feb 2012 more >>
The earthquake and nuclear meltdown in Japan last year compounded pre-existing issues like falling birth rates, fragmented families and shrinking communities. What does the future hold?
Ecologist 15th Feb 2012 more >>
Germany
A few days ago a sensational and erroneous – piece of news spread in the media: On account of this winters unprecedented cold snap, Germany has ostensibly re-launched several of the nuclear reactors it shut down last year in the wake of the terrible catastrophe at Japans Fukushima. The misreporting aside, the story did serve to highlight another falsehood that nuclear power is the best bet against the worlds new plague, the extreme spells of cold and heat brought on by climate change. As Jan Haverkamp, Greenpeaces expert consultant on nuclear energy, points out, the eight nuclear power plants that Germany closed after Fukushima no longer have licenses and cannot legally go back into operation, or, for that matter, into reserve.
Bellona 13th Feb 2012 more >>
US
The future of U.S. nuclear power rests squarely on the shoulders of Atlanta-based Southern Co which will lead the industry’s effort to prove the concept of new reactor construction after a 30-year hiatus. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) on Feb. 9 voted 4-1 to issue Southern a permit to build and operate two units at its existing Vogtle plant in eastern Georgia. These were the first U.S. permits issued since 1978, a year before the partial meltdown at the Three Mile Island plant in Pennsylvania cast a pall over the industry and halted plans for dozens of plants.
Reuters 15th Feb 2012 more >>
Submarines
As a Russian magazine reports the country came close to nuclear disaster in December following a fire on a submarine, Channel 4 News speaks to an engineer who worked on the salvage of the Kursk.
Channel 4 News 15th Feb 2012 more >>
Trident
A VETERAN US congressional defence analyst has suggested that Scottish independence might not be too good for American defence and foreign investment. Mr Goldich highlighted the SNPs aim to rid Scotland of nuclear weapons.
Scotsman 16th Feb 2012 more >>
