New Nukes
Ministers are close to giving the green light to a financial package of up to £30m ($45m) which would enable a Sheffield manufacturer to build a giant machine vital to the construction of a new series of nuclear reactors. The machine that Forgemasters wants to build is called an open-die press, capable of pressing down on metal with a force of about 15,000 tonnes, making it among the most powerful machines of this type ever built.
FT 24th Nov 2008 more >>
Letter: Your article “Lawyers caution on nuclear plan row” (November 18) is incorrect in that we are not commissioned by the government in respect of nuclear matters. Nor was the report you refer to commissioned by Tim Stone, the government’s nuclear adviser. It was in fact a note written for a conference organised by Cityforum.
FT 24th Nov 2008 more >>
Electricity Supplies
The UK is at “real risk” of imminent power shortages as a result of attempts to shift to more environmentally friendly methods of electrictity production, a report has warned. In 2005, the UK became a net importer of gas. By 2010, imports could account for 40 per cent of British gas needs; by 2020, 80 per cent to 90 per cent. Nuclear reactors currently account for about 20 per cent of Britain’s electricity, but this will shrink to 6 per cent in 20 years as ageing plants are closed down. A spokesman for Capgemini said that unless new power stations are built “the lights will go out”. He added: “Last year the system very nearly ran out of power and situation is still very tight. We have a large number of power stations that are going to close between now and 2015.
Telegraph 24th Nov 2008 more >>
Iran
Britain is to assure Iran that it is “100% committed to diplomacy” to end the impasse over Tehran’s nuclear ambitions and is signalling that it expects Barack Obama’s administration to follow the same approach.
Guardian 24th Nov 2008 more >>
David Miliband will today urge Arab leaders to make clear that they do not support Iran’s nuclear ambitions. On a visit to the United Arab Emirates, the Foreign Secretary will say a nuclear-armed Tehran is the “most immediate” threat to stability in the Middle East. He will insist that more pressure needs to be brought to bear on President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad by Iran’s regional neighbours.
Herald 24th Nov 2008 more >>
Channel 4 News 23rd Nov 2008 more >>
Reuters 23rd Nov 2008 more >>
Disarmament
Ban Ki-moon: Weapons of mass destruction and disarmament form one of the gravest challenges facing the world. One of my priorities as United Nations secretary general is to promote global public goods and remedies to challenges that do not respect borders. A world free of nuclear weapons is a global public good of the highest order.
Guardian 23rd Nov 2008 more >>
Energy Efficiency
A plan to create more than 10,000 jobs in the construction industry by insulating homes in the private and public sectors will be announced by Alistair Darling in today’s pre-budget report. The government will bring forward future capital spending in an attempt to reduce energy bills this winter and to employ some of those laid off during the worst downturn in the property market for two decades.
Guardian 24th Nov 2008 more >>
Renewables
In the desert of southern Spain, 20 miles outside Seville, more than 1,000 mirrors are being carefully positioned. Each is about half the size of a tennis court, so the adjustments will take time. But when they are complete in a few weeks, it will mark a major moment in the quest for renewable energy. The mirrors are part of the world’s biggest solar tower plant, a technology that reflects sunlight to superheat water at a central tower. Once this 80m (£67m) plant is inaugurated in January, it will generate 20MW of electricity, enough to power 11,000 Spanish homes.
Guardian 24th Nov 2008 more >>
Ikea executives have suggested that the company’s skills in designing low-cost products, along with its economies of scale, could halve the cost of solar electricity from its current rate of around 2 (£1.70) per kilowatt hour of generating power to about 1/kWh.
Independent 23rd Nov 2008 more >>
