New nukes
The next generation of nuclear power stations is set to be given the go-ahead by the Government next week despite fierce opposition from environmentalists and MPs.
Telegraph 31st Dec 2007 more >>
Duff, 48, is chief executive of RWE npower, the German-owned British power company. Parent RWE operates nuclear power stations in Germany but he knows public opinion is divided in Britain, where the Government is expected to publish its White Paper on nuclear power next month. “My views on nuclear power are that it’s not certain yet that our population is convinced that it’s the right solution to our sustainability and environmental challenges,” he says carefully. “The question for us is whether we believe the known risks around nuclear are worth taking in order to give us time to deal with the potentially very substantial risks in relation to climate change and long-term energy security.
The Business 31st Dec 2007 more >>
Telegraph 31st Dec 2007 more >>
French power giant Electricite de France (EDF) looks favourite to build the first of a new wave of UK nuclear power stations after agreeing a partnership with British civil engineer Amec PLC, the Financial Mail on Sunday reported. EDF will work with French nuclear power group Areva as well as Amec on bids for contracts to build new nuclear power stations in southern England, the report said.
Interactive Investor 30th Dec 2007 more >>
Mail on Sunday 30th Dec 2007 more >>
Pakistan
M J Gohel, the head of the Asia-Pacific Foundation, a London-based security and intelligence think-tank, believes there is a strong possibility that parts of Pakistan’s nuclear technology could fall into the grip of militants. “It’s a very, very valid risk,” he said. “It’s only a matter of time before al-Qaeda or somebody sympathetic to them gets hold of nuclear weapons, and if al-Qaeda or its sympathisers are to get hold of them, then Pakistan is at this point the weakest link in the chain.” Nuclear materials controlled by Islamic fanatics is the White House’s worst nightmare but Bhutto’s death brings the possibility closer.
Scotland on Sunday 30th Dec 2007 more >>
US special forces snatch squads are on standby to seize or disable Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal in the event of a collapse of government authority or the outbreak of civil war following the assassination of Benazir Bhutto.
Herald 31st Dec 2007 more >>
Korea
North Korea showed no signs of meeting its deadline Monday for declaring all of its nuclear programs, a key component of its agreement to disarm in exchange for economic aid.
Guardian website 31st Dec 2007 more >>
BBC 31st Dec 2007 more >>
Reuters 30th Dec 2007 more >>
FT 31st Dec 2007 more >>
Iran
IRAN will begin operation of the country’s first nuclear power plant within months, the country’s foreign minister, Manouchehr Mottaki, said yesterday, two days after the arrival of a second delivery of nuclear fuel from Russia.
Scotsman 31st Dec 2007 more >>
Nuclear Testing
Letter: Rather than a dream being Chapman Pincher’s inspiration for his 1974 scoop about secret British nuclear tests in Nevada (report, December 28), I suspect his canny professionalism lay behind it. The story in the Washington Press Club was that he got motel operators near the nuclear testing grounds to let him know when a group of likely-looking men with British accents checked in. He then put two and two together and on this occasion, to Harold Wilson’s embarrassment, he got the right answer.
Telegraph 31st Dec 2007 more >>
Renewables
We have one of the lowest shares of renewable energy (about 2%) in the European Union, one tenth of the wind power and 1/250th of the solar power that the German firms have produced. The government’s response was to cut grants it was offering households to install renewable energy systems through its low-carbon buildings programme (LCBP). The result was entirely predictable – take-up of grants collapsed and installations of solar panels and micro-generators slowed right down. Renewables companies – employing about 25,000 – were forced to lay off staff. In Germany, 25,000 jobs were created in the industry this year. Not a high score for the government here, either. The Germans have a “feed-in tariff” (Fit) which guarantees generous payments to households that install micro-generation equipment and sell the surplus electricity to the grid. Electricity companies have to buy the power and share the cost among all their customers. The additional cost is not high and the Germans are building a huge new industry on the back of it.
Guardian 31st Dec 2007 more >>
