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While the arguments rage on both sides, the experts say that time is running out For the workers at Oldbury-on-Severn nuclear power plant, the next new year celebrations could be rather poignant. Just as Britain is planning the rebirth of nuclear power generation, their ageing plant will be closing down, probably on December 31. Oldbury, in Gloucestershire, has been pouring power into the national grid since 1967 and is the latest in a series of closures that has seen Britain's nuclear generating capacity fall from nearly 40% of the nation's needs in the 1980s to just 15% now. Most of the slack has been taken up by new gas-fired stations.

EDF Energy has secured planning approval from the Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC) to construct a £14bn nuclear power plant at Hinkley Point C in Somerset, UK.

"The world's largest tidal power station will be constructed off the coast of Incheon. GS Engineering and Construction signed a memorandum of understanding with state-run Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power (KHNP) on Wednesday and will begin construction later next year with a view to completion around 2017. The power station will have a capacity of 1.32 million kw/h, surpassing the 1 million kw/h of a nuclear reactor being constructed in Ulsan and 3.4 times greater than the capacity of the Rance Tidal Power Station in France, currently the world's largest. It will generate 2.41 billion kw per year, the equivalent of 60 percent of Incheon's household electricity consumption."

The 6,000MW Zaporizhye Nuclear Power Plant (NPP), located in Energodar in the south-eastern part of Ukraine, is the biggest nuclear power plant in Europe and the fifth biggest in the world. It is owned and operated by Ukraine's national nuclear energy generating company Energoatom and is one of the four operational NPPs in the country.

Last year the Swiss nuclear regulator requested that the Convention on Nuclear Safety mandate that the safety of existing nuclear power plants should be in line with standards for new nuclear power plants. In February the Convention declined. Was it right to do so?

- Installed capacity in China's wind power sector will grow 64 percent this year to 20 million kilowatts, organizers of the 3rd China (Shanghai) International Wind Energy Exhibition and Symposium 2009 forecast Friday. Installed capacity grew 105 percent last year. Chinese industry experts believe that by about 2020, wind power will likely surpass nuclear power as China's third-largest source of electricity, after thermal and hydro power. Wind power comprised 1.5 percent of China's total installed capacity in 2008, when the country became the world's fourth-largest wind power market.

Inhabitat is doing a "Energy 101" series to explain why smart grids are necessary - Energy 101: Where Does Our Power Come From ?. Today we're excited to announce the launch of our new Energy 101 series,. in which we'll be exploring the future-forward technologies that stand to upgrade our grids, reduce our energy footprint, and slow the speed of global warming. Unless you have been living in a cave for the past few years, you've probably heard terms like "energy conservation", "off-grid energy", and "smart grid" tossed around. But before getting into the nitty-gritty of transitioning to renewable energy, we should stop and examine where exactly our power comes from now. Unless you derive all your power from on-site renewable energy sources like solar panels or wind turbines, chances are that you're connected to the power grid, a vast network that delivers electricity from suppliers to consumers. Right now, most energy on the grid comes from generating plants. These plants still usually get power from traditional sources like coal, nuclear, and hydroelectric dams. But as concerns over carbon emissions, safety, and long term sustainability of these sources grow, electrical utilities have begun to switch over to renewable energy sources.

Kramer Junction. Nevada Solar One. Andasol 1. Kimberlina. They're obscure names today. But they'll be household names tomorrow. The reason? Each is now providing 'here and now' proof concentrating solar power (CSP) works. That can't be said for cabon capture and storage. Nor can it be said for 'next generation' nuclear. Each faces years of additional research and development before some 'first mover' will be game enough to build one. That just isn't the case with concentrating solar power. It's got 20 years of proven commercial operation (Kramer Junction) behind it. It also has new innovations coming on line (Nevada Solar One), with solar thermal storage (Andasol 1), and the promise of super-low costs in coming years (Ausra's Kimberlina). What it adds up to is a price-declining research and development juggernaut in concentrating solar power. This is rapidly bringing concentrating solar power closer to competitiveness with dirty fossil fuels. The California Energy Commission estimates this price 'cross over' could happen by 2015. Bulls predict sooner. And in an industry where new plants and equipment can last 40 years, 5-7 years from now is like tomorrow. What this means is that for forward planning of new infrastructure, concentrating solar power is already nipping at the heels of coal. Toss in carbon prices and the reduced likelihood of protesters chaining themselves to bulldozers as they are likely to at any new coal plants, CSP starts looking like a VERY good deal indeed.

n 2008, more wind power was installed in the EU than any other European Wind Energy Association (EWEA) Logo today show that 43% of all new Electricity generating capacity built in the European Union last year was wind energy, exceeding all other technologies including gas, coal and nuclear power. A total of 19,651 MW of new power capacity was constructed in the EU last year. Out of this, 8,484 MW (43%) was wind power; 6,932 MW (35%) gas; 2,495 MW (13%) oil; 762 (4%) MW coal and 473 (2%) MW hydro power capacity. For the first time, wind energy is the leading technology in Europe. A total of 64,949 MW of installed wind energy capacity was operating in the EU

An environmentalist-sponsored report claims that by 2050, the United States could sever ties with coal and nuclear power, draw nearly all its electricity from renewable sources and cut its greenhouse gas emissions by more than 80% -- all with existing technology and with a net gain of 14 million jobs to the domestic economy. The report, commissioned by Greenpeace and the European Renewable Energy Council and conducted by Germany's equivalent of NASA, was released this morning at a press briefing in Washington. It is heavy on charts and supporting data and transparent on some key assumptions. And its sponsors call its findings "conservative." At its core, the report envisions a steep drop in the United States' energy use, both in absolute terms and compared with International Energy Agency predictions -- driven by strict efficiency standards. It also projects dramatic changes in the nation's electricity mix, with wind and solar power mushrooming to replace coal, oil and nuclear sources that would gradually go offline.

How about a power station in your basement? In a bid to create a decentralized electricity grid, German carmaker Volkswagen is launching thousands of mini power plants that could be installed in the basements of any residential home. Together with clean energy provider Lichtblick, Volkswagen plans to install up to 100,000 small power plants -- able to generate heat and electricity -- in people's homes to generate enough energy to offset two nuclear power plants. Taken together, all mini plants would have a capacity of 2 GW. The project could lure many Germans away from traditional utilities toward decentralized energy generation, which experts say will be the buzzword of tomorrow's energy mix.

Power lines, such as those near Hoover Dam, cannot be built to reach remote areas for renewable energy development until the areas for energy production are agreed upon. Several entities have offered or are working on maps locating renewable energy resources. By Alexandra Berzon (contact) Tue, Jun 16, 2009 (2 a.m.) Click to enlarge photo Chris Morris Related Document (.pdf) * See the Western Renewable Energy Zones report Sun Archives * State thinks big on solar power (6-15-2009) * The power of the desert (4-5-2009) * State faces obstacles to cashing in on sun (3-9-2009) Sun Coverage * Archive of Sun energy stories Related Story * States, energy secretary agree to safe nuclear waste transport On one map they look like bubbles. On another they're more like hot dogs. These shaded circles and oblongs in Nevada and across the West could one day be clusters of solar power plants, wind farms or geothermal energy projects.

Plans in Cumbria to build Europe's largest power plant have been cemented after Toshiba and GDF Suez signed a deal to develop the site. But big questions remain over the design of the plant and the future of the nuclear power industry in the UK.

British buildings equipped with solar, wind and other micro power equipment could generate as much electricity in a year as five nuclear power stations, a government-backed industry report showed today. Commissioned by the Department for Business, Energy and Regulatory Reform (DBERR), the report says that if government chose to be as ambitious as some other countries, a combination of loans, grants and incentives could lead to nearly 10m microgeneration systems being installed by 2020.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's long-held ambitions for civil nuclear power have hit the headlines again, partly due to the Trump administration's support. If the kingdom is to succeed, it first has to accept its international obligations, including IAEA monitoring.

No one will be surprised that Greenpeace is against the construction of new nuclear power stations, but what some may find unusual is one of the solutions we are proposing to meet our energy needs and reduce our CO2 emissions - industrial CHP, or combined heat and power.

Inspired by the promise of vastly increased flight durations, the Russian and American militaries experimented with nuclear powered aircraft for two decades, but the concept never progressed beyond a handful of trials. Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works claims to have the solution in its grasp, unveiling plans for a compact nuclear fusion generator that could power everything from aircraft to naval vessels within ten years.

Six of the ten biggest power stations in the US are fossil-fuelled, while the other four, including the two biggest Grand Coulee and Palo Verde, are hydro -and nuclear-powered. Power-technology.com profiles the ten biggest power stations in the US based on installed capacity.

The ten biggest power stations in Russia include four hydroelectric power facilities, four nuclear power stations, and two gas-fired power stations. Power-technology.com profiles the ten biggest Russian power stations by installed capacity.

The US could replace all its cars and trucks with electric cars powered by wind turbines taking up less than 3 square kilometres - in theory, at least. That's the conclusion of a detailed study ranking 11 types of non-fossil fuels according to their total ecological footprint and their benefit to human health. The study, carried out by Mark Jacobson of the atmosphere and energy programme at Stanford University, found wind power to be by far the most desirable source of energy. Biofuels from corn and plant waste came right at the bottom of the list, along with nuclear power and "clean" coal.