China
South Korea’s Doosan Heavy signed a letter of intent with U.S. power company Westinghouse to supply nuclear power facilities worth over $350 million, Seoul’s energy ministry said on Tuesday. Under the deal, Doosan will provide equipments for nuclear power plants to be built in China by Westinghouse, the ministry said in a statement. The power plants, to be built between 2008 and 2013, will increase China’s dependency on nuclear power to 4.7 percent by 2010, from the current 2 percent, the ministry added.
Reuters 24th April 2007
Russia
Russia has an ambitious two-pronged plan. It wants to build more nuclear power stations at home while also carving out for itself a role in the wave of nuclear expansion sweeping the world from the UK to China.
Telegraph 24th April 2007
Iran
EU foreign ministers have agreed to implement sanctions against Iran after its refusal to halt uranium enrichment. The sanctions go further than those already agreed by the United Nations.
BBC 23rd April 2007
EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana will meet top Iranian negotiator Ali Larijani in Ankara on Wednesday to see if Iran can be persuaded to halt uranium enrichment in exchange for negotiations about economic incentives.
Channel 4 News 23rd April 2007
Belfast Telegraph 23rd April 2007
Interactive Investor 23rd April 2007
Reuters 23rd April 2007
Nuclear Waste
The candidate opposed to a nuclear dump site won Sunday’s mayoral election in Toyo, Kochi Prefecture, defeating the former mayor who sought voter endorsement to host the site, the town’s election office said.
Japan Times 23rd April 2007
British Energy
The fate of two of British Energy’s troubled reactors could be sealed by the end of the month when the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate (NII) publishes its 10-yearly “Periodic Safety Review” into Hinkley Point B in Somerset and Hunterston B, on the west coast of Scotland. The two reactors, closed for the past six months after cracks were found on its boiler tubes, are due to shut down permanently in 2011. But British Energy, which generates around a fifth of the UK’s electricity when all its reactors are operational, is understood to want to extend the lifetime of the reactors to ward off a looming generation gap in the next decade. It would have to start planning the extensions over the next 18 months.
Independent on Sunday 22nd April 2007
Star Wars
The US defence secretary, Robert Gates, received a cool reception in Moscow yesterday when he attempted to reassure Russia over the US’s controversial missile defence plans in eastern Europe.
Guardian 24th April 2007
FT 24th April 2007
Scotland
Mr McConnell again emphasised it would be “irresponsible” to categorically promise against the renewal of Scotland’s nuclear power stations, given their importance to the nation’s energy supply.
Herald 23rd April 2007
