EDF
Henri Proglio, the chief executive of Veolia, the French water and waste management group, is expected to be named as head of EdF, the state electricity giant, this weekend. Mr Proglio, 60, will replace Pierre Gadonneix as chief executive of EdF, which bought British Energy for £12.4 billion one year ago, according to French government insiders. The move is likely to be finalised by President Sarkozy before an EdF board meeting on Sunday.
Times 26th Sept 2009 more >>
Radiation & Health
In 2008, the KiKK study in Germany reported a 1.6-fold increase in solid cancers and a 2.2-fold increase in leukemias among children living within 5 km of all German nuclear power stations. The study has triggered debates as to the cause(s) of these increased cancers. This article, by Dr Ian Fairlie, reports on the findings of the KiKK study; discusses past and more recent epidemiological studies of leukemias near nuclear installations around the world, and outlines a possible biological mechanism to explain the increased cancers.
Environmental Health Journal 23rd September 2009 more >>
Sizewell
Five local activists calling themselves the Sizewell Blockaders are appearing in Lowestoft court next week charged with aggravated trespass at Sizewell Nuclear Power Stations. The charges relate to a blockade, which took place back in July 2008 when the 5 activists locked themselves together on the end of the only entrance road to the nuclear power stations. The five activists claim that the stations should be shut down for health and safety reasons and therefore the activities on the site are not lawful. Some of the defendants are calling Dr Ian Fairlie, a Consultant on Radioactivity in the Environment who will be giving evidence about recent German studies (the KiKK study) which found that all types of cancer as well as leukaemia occurred significantly more frequently in the vicinity of nuclear power plants (within a radius of 5 km) than in further distant areas.
View on the Ground 25th Sept 2009 more >>
Get noticed online 25th Sept 2009 more >>
Iran
It seems we may only be a year or so away from Iran having its own nuclear weapons. Considering the country’s hardline regime controlled by the ayatollahs, that prospect is a chilling one – and far more worrying than Saddam’s “weapons of mass destruction”.
Daily Record 26th Sept 2009 more >>
THE REVELATION that Iran has been illegally hiding another nuclear plant represented an intelligence coup for the United States and its allies, and it was delivered at an important moment — just days before the first meeting in a year between Iran and the international coalition that has been pressing for a suspension of its nuclear program. The uranium enrichment facility, hidden in tunnels under a mountain near the city of Qom, looks like the sort of clandestine plant that U.S. intelligence agencies predicted Iran would use to produce a weapon; officials say that when it is operational, it could deliver the material for a bomb in a year. If that was its purpose, then its discovery has dealt Iran’s program a setback.
Washington Post 26th Sept 2009 more >>
GORDON BROWN joined the US and France yesterday in demanding Iran give up its nuclear programme following the dramatic disclosure that Tehran is building another secret nuclear facility.
Northern Echo 26th Sept 2009 more >>
US president Barack Obama revealed yesterday that Iran had concealed a partially built second uranium enrichment plant in defiance of calls for transparency over its nuclear plans.
Scotsman 26th Sept 2009 more >>
Irish Times 26th Sept 2009 more >>
BBC 26th Sept 2009 more >>
Iran’s attempt at damage control backfired on the Islamic regime when its disclosure of a supposed “pilot plant” provoked a virtual ultimatum by the leaders of Britain, France and the United States.The letter has provided evidence to prove that Iran has been concealing information from the international community. Both Russia and China, whose leaders were attending the G20 summit in Pittsburgh, hardened their position.
Times 26th Sept 2009 more >>
Yesterday’s revelations about Iran’s secret uranium enrichment facility at Qom came after three years of intensive investigation and surveillance by the most trusted of America’s intelligence allies: Britain, France and Israel. Last week, as Tehran finally woke up to the knowledge that the plant’s security had been breached, it rushed to declare its existence to the IAEA, hoping to pre-empt other reports and prove its openness and co-operation. At the G20 meeting Gordon Brown said, clear evidence of Iran’s “serial deception”. Not only had Tehran sought to deceive the world about the Qom plant’s existence, the evidence clearly showed that it was intended for military use. “The size and configuration of this facility is inconsistent with a peaceful programme,” Mr Brown said. “Iran is breaking rules that all nations must follow endangering the nonproliferation regime, denying its people access to the opportunity they deserve, and threatening the stability and security of the region and the world.”
Times 26th Sept 2009 more >>
President Ahmadinejad was caught off guard today as he learnt from an American reporter on camera that his secret nuclear facility in Iran was about to be exposed by President Obama.
Times 26th Sept 2009 more >>
Britain played a key role in gathering intelligence to expose Iran’s secret nuclear facility, according to Western diplomatic sources. Officials in Pittsburgh said today that the British intelligence services played a “big part” in the hunt for concealed uranium enrichment capacity in Iran.
Times 26th Sept 2009 more >>
The US, Britain and France united in condemnation of Iran on Friday after Tehrans admission that it has been constructing a secret uranium enrichment facility that Washington fears could help produce a nuclear bomb.
FT 26th Sept 2009 more >>
The Iranian nuclear crisis reached a decisive moment yesterday after Tehran was forced to admit it was building a secret uranium enrichment plant inside a mountain in the arid centre of the country. The admission, following the discovery of the plant by the CIA, MI6 and the French DGSE intelligence agency, paved the way for a showdown on Thursday in Geneva, where Iranian officials are due to meet representatives of six major powers. (See Guardian website for several related stories)
Guardian 26th Sept 2009 more >>
Independent 26th Sept 2009 more >>
Telegraph 26th Sept 2009 more >>
India
Canada is close to signing a deal with India to sell nuclear technology and materials, Trade Minister Stockwell Day said on Friday, adding he was confident that remaining security concerns would be resolved. Day made similar comments in May, saying at that time that a deal was imminent. He told reporters on a conference call that he was now ironing out a few final stumbling blocks.
Interactive Investor 25th Sept 2009 more >>
France
Engineers at French state-owned utility EdF’s Paluel nuclear plant halted the 1,300MW unit 3 after a fire broke out early this morning. The reactor came off the French grid at 03:30 CET (01.30 GMT) after a fire broke out in the machine room. EdF was unable to say when the unit will return to service. The plant’s unit 2 remains out of operation for maintenance and refuelling. The 900MW unit 1 at EdF’s Chinon plant returned to the French grid this week following maintenance. The latest shutdowns and reconnections bring EdF’s unavailable nuclear capacity to 18.5GW, or 29.6pc of its fleet.
Argus Media 25th Sept 2009 more >>
Kazakhstan
Canada and Kazakhstan have concluded negotiations on the text of a nuclear cooperation agreement, ministers from the two countries have announced.
World Nuclear News 25th Sept 2009 more >>
