Energy Prices
Wholesale gas fell to its lowest price so far this year on the same day that E.ON said it would have to raise bills by 18pc to cope with high commodity costs. Developments in the eurozone and across the Atlantic in the US in recent weeks suggest that we are facing a continued economic slowdown. If wholesale prices continue to drop, the decision to put up the energy prices for households is going to be a difficult PR pill for energy firms to swallow
Telegraph 6th Aug 2011 more >>
Companies
The government will not try to stop Gazprom, the Kremlin-controlled energy giant, from investing in British power stations, according to Charles Hendry, the energy minister. He said Gazproms interest in Britains energy infrastructure would be welcomed. The Russian group is the biggest supplier of gas to continental Europe but delivers none to Britain. It wants to grow its business here but has encountered opposition in the past. Five years ago the previous government considered blocking a rumoured takeover of Centrica, owner of British Gas, amid concerns that the company could be used as a tool of political influence. Now the industry faces a £200 billion bill to replace its old fleet of fossil-fuel power stations with more expensive alternatives such as wind and nuclear. is in talks with RWE, the German owner of Npower, to set up a joint venture in which it would take an equity stake in the utilitys power plants across Europe, including possibly in Britain. RWE will reveal its half-yearly results on Wednesday, where chief executive Jürgen Grossman is expected to give further details of his plans for the group. The company is struggling under a 27.5 billion (£24 billion) debt pile. It hired Goldman Sachs to find a buyer for Npower, but the sale is thought to have been put on the back burner until the talks with Gazprom come to an end. Grossman will also be pressed over his commitment to Horizon, the joint venture he set up with German rival Eon to build nuclear power plants in Britain. After Germanys decision to phase out the technology in the wake of Japans nuclear meltdown in March, industry watchers said the companies could dissolve the partnership. That would be a blow to the UKs plan to build up to a dozen nuclear stations.
Sunday Times 7th Aug 2011 more >>
AGRs
Engineering consultancy Frazer-Nash is providing support to an experiment as part of an EDF Energy project to extend the life of the UKs advanced gas-cooled nuclear reactors (AGRs), which has long been a strategic priority for EDF. The study, being undertaken at the Materials Test Reactor in Petten, Holland, will see the engineering experts providing technical support and interpreting materials data for integration into EDF Energy¹s AGR safety case.
The Engineer 5th Aug 2011 more >>
Sellafield
This is a rather sad state of affairs in a country that once was a leader in nuclear technology. It has also turned out to be a pretty rum deal for the British tax payer. Construction of the Mox facility at Sellafield was completed in 1997 but has had an operational lifespan of under 10 years.
IB Times 6th Aug 2011 more >>
Uranium
Namibia is one of the worlds most significant producers of uranium, currently providing about 10% of the worlds production. Owing to the rise in the global consumption of the mineral, uranium exploration and mining companies have become increasingly active in the country, which has significant deposits that are currently being developed and mines that are in full operation. The Damara province is one of the worlds best-known uranium districts. Located in this area are mining giant Rio Tintos Rössing mine, uranium production company Paladins Langer Heinrich mine, French nuclear giant Arevas Trekkopje project and emerging uranium developer Bannermans Etango deposit. Perth-based Marenica Energy has also acquired a uranium project in this area.
Mining Weekly 5th Aug 2011 more >>
Japan
Aghast at the catastrophic failure of nuclear technology, and outraged by revelations that the government and power industry had planted nuclear proponents at recent town hall-style meetings, the elderly atomic bomb survivors, dwindling in numbers, have begun stepping forward for the first time to oppose nuclear power.
New York Times 6th Aug 2011 more >>
Asahi Editorial: Now that the Fukushima disaster has shown how easily the safety of nuclear power generation can be endangered, we should also begin to look for a way to wean ourselves from our dependence on nuclear power. There are an estimated 23,000 nuclear warheads in the world. There are 440 nuclear reactors in service. This will be a long and difficult path. Japan should not just keep campaigning for the elimination of nuclear arms. It should also make an exhaustive investigation of the safety of nuclear power generation and start the process of phasing out its nuclear power plants. We owe that to the victims of the disasters in Hiroshima, Nagasaki and Fukushima and also to the next generation. As we ponder the future of our nation, we are convinced that Japan, which has experienced all these nuclear tragedies, should be the first country to take steps toward phasing out all nuclear power, instead of trying to live with it.
Asahi 6th Aug 2011 more >>
The Prime Minster, Naoto Kan, used the occasion to pledge a reduction in Japan’s dependence on nuclear power.
Independent 7th Aug 2011 more >>
It marks a change of tack in a country which until now has avoided linking its fast growing, and now discredited, nuclear power industry to its trauma as the only country to have suffered an atom bomb strike.
Scotsman 7th Aug 2011 more >>
Kan repeated a promise to embrace renewable energy and rely less on nuclear power.
Daily Mail 6th Aug 2011 more >>
BBC 6th Aug 2011 more >>
In a bid to revive his political fortunes, Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan last Thursday dismissed three top officials in charge of the countrys nuclear policy. The move came amid widespread concern and anger over the ongoing nuclear disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi plant since the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.
World Socialist Web 6th Aug 2011 more >>
