Hinkley
THERE is growing tension surrounding the Hinkley C project amid reports talks between EDF Energy and the Government over the price to be paid for the energy generated have reached “crisis point”. A planning decision on Hinkley C will be announced before March 19, with Energy Secretary Ed Davey firmly expected to give the thumbs-up.
Somerset County Gazette 5th March 2013 read more »
Western Daily Press 6th March 2013 read more »
Sellafield Moorside
One of the world’s best-known electrical manufacturers is involved in talks to build three nuclear reactors in west Cumbria. Toshiba, best known for producing consumer electronics, is understood to have approached the Department of Energy and Climate Change regarding involvement in the NuGen consortium, a partnership between French firm GDF and Spanish giants Iberdrola. NuGen has plans to create a new nuclear power station on a site, known as Moorside, near Sellafield. It is understood Toshiba – which already owns Westinghouse, at the Springfields site near Preston – has also expressed interest in taking on a majority stake in the consortium should one of the existing parties drop out.
In Cumbria 5th March 2013 read more »
Cumberland News 5th March 2013 read more »
New Nukes
The UK needs alternative ideas to ensure the building of a new generation of nuclear power stations in case current plans collapse, MPs have warned. The government is negotiating with three groups aiming to build Britain’s new generation of nuclear plants but needs to stop “crossing its fingers’”and develop a back-up strategy in case these plans are derailed, according to a House of Commons select committee.
Process Engineering 5th March 2013 read more »
Plutonium Transports
French energy group Areva said it was preparing to send nuclear fuel to Japan for the first time since the Fukushima disaster in March 2011, a sign of possible restarts of idled Japanese reactors. The shipment of mixed oxide fuel (MOX) is likely to be controversial in Japan, where public opposition to nuclear power and reactor restarts remains strong in the run-up to the second anniversary of the March 11, 2011 catastrophe. The fuel will be shipped out of the port of Cherbourg in northern France in early April, according to Greenpeace, an anti-nuclear group. Areva officials declined to comment on the timing.
Asahi 5th March 2013 read more »
EIA Directive
Today’s entry reports on proposed changes to the regime of environmental impact assessment and the attitude of the UK government to them.
BDB Blog 5th March 2013 read more »
Japan
Companies deeply involved in the design, construction and running of the Fukushima reactors involved in the triple meltdown are not being held accountable. Shockingly in some cases, they are making more profits out of the disaster recovery. These companies, namely GE, Hitachi, and Toshiba who designed and built reactors at Fukushima Daiichi, have special rights under the Nuclear Damage Liability Law that protect them from product liability should there be a nuclear disaster. Essentially this means they can profit without worrying about the risks of a meltdown, since the public pays the damage should an accident happen.
Greenpeace 5th March 2013 read more »
Fukushima Crisis Update 1st to 4th March.
Greenpeace 5th March 2013 read more »
TransNuclear has delivered the first three of the 11 metallic casks to Japan-based electric utilities company Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO) for the dry storage of spent fuels of Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. The joint venture company TransNuclear is formed by France-based energy and mining conglomerate, Areva and Japanese materials and machinery manufacturer Kobe Steel.
Energy Business Review 6th March 2013 read more »
Russia
Russia has conducted an exercise designed to test the transport of nuclear weapons near Europe, according to US officials. The drill was the largest of its kind in two decades and was carried out as part of larger military drills last month. It is said to have sparked concern inside the Pentagon and US European Command but a Defence spokesman played the incident down.
Daily Mail 6th March 2013 read more »
Korea
North Korea has vowed to cancel the 1953 cease-fire that ended the Korean War in revenge for UN sanctions over its recent nuclear test and continuing U.S.-South Korean joint military drills. The Korean People’s Army Supreme Command warned of ‘surgical strikes’ meant to unify the divided Korean Peninsula, and of a ‘precision nuclear striking tool’.
Daily Mail 6th March 2013 read more »
The UN security council is considering imposing some of the toughest sanctions yet conceived against North Korea as senior diplomats from the 15 council member nations began discussions on a draft resolution framed by the US and China that would seek to deflect Pyongyang from its belligerent nuclear path.
Guardian 5th March 2013 read more »
Submarine
Portland Port’s reaction to an incident involving a nuclear powered submarine will be tested next week. Although an emergency incident is highly unlikely at the Dorset port, agencies including the Ministry of Defence will test the readiness of authorities on April 10.
This is Dorset 6th March 2013 read more »
Renewables
MPs are due to decide on Wednesday whether to accept controversial plans for new subsidies to burn trees and plants in UK power stations. Ministers are looking to biofuels like palm oil and American wood pellets to help meet the UK’s legally binding commitment on renewable energy. Biofuelwatch says Holland and Germany have withdrawn subsidies from liquid biofuels for power generation. Meanwhile, the life of old coal-fired power stations is being extended by subsidising them to burn wood pellets. The giant Drax station in Yorkshire, for instance, is turning over half its boilers to pellets.
BBC 6th March 2013 read more »
Grid
Energy company SSE has announced it is withdrawing from a project to build a subsea electricity cable linking Scotland and Norway. The firm said it would “no longer have a financial involvement” in the NorthConnect project. SSE will instead focus on its markets in Britain and Ireland.
BBC 5th March 2013 read more »
Herald 5th March 2013 read more »
Energy Efficiency
Ed Davey, the energy and climate change secretary, defended the government’s green deal loan scheme on Tuesday, saying the interest rates of around 7% for householders to undertake energy efficiency works are not excessive. The flagship scheme, launched in January, allows householders to repay long-term loans for installing up to 40 different energy saving technologies via their electricity bills. But it was widely criticised at its launch for failing to provide enough incentives for the householder and for being overly complex. “I would not expect many people to apply for finance yet. It’s a bit too early,” said Davey. “I won’t concede that loan costs are too high. You have to compare it with unsecured loan and not mortgages. This is a great deal,” he told dele gates at Ecobuild, a sustainable building show in London.
Guardian 5th March 2013 read more »
Eric Pickles’ Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) will face a day in court over its controversial decision to scrap energy efficiency rules that would have delivered an estimated £11bn boost to the economy. The Association for the Conservation of Energy (ACE) confirmed this afternoon that it will make good on its threat to seek to a Judicial Review over Pickles’ decision late last year to scrap the “consequential improvement” rules.
Guardian 5th March 2013 read more »
Business Green 5th March 2013 read more »
