Group items tagged

Amman Daewoo Engineering & Construction Co. and the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute received an order to build Jordan's first nuclear reactor. The five-megawatt reactor, for research and training purposes, will be completed by 2014, South Korea's science ministry said yesterday in an official statement. According to the Seoul daily Korea Times, the deal is valued at $173 million and represents Korea's first export of a locally-designed nuclear plant. Daewoo edged out Argentina's Invap, China's CNNC and Russia's Atom Story Export (ASE).

Amman Daewoo Engineering & Construction Co. and the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute received an order to build Jordan's first nuclear reactor. The five-megawatt reactor, for research and training purposes, will be completed by 2014, South Korea's science ministry said yesterday in an official statement. According to the Seoul daily Korea Times, the deal is valued at $173 million and represents Korea's first export of a locally-designed nuclear plant. Daewoo edged out Argentina's Invap, China's CNNC and Russia's Atom Story Export (ASE).

NIGERIA yesterday took a more pragmatic step towards generating power from nuclear energy as it officially unveiled a 10-year strategic plan of action. Meanwhile, the Minister of State for Finance Remi Babalola, said yesterday that the Federal Government had released in full the capital budget for this year to all its ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) since October ending. This is coming as Nigeria was certified by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as having met the first requirement set by the agency for countries wishing to generate power from nuclear energy. Nigeria is now ready to undertake the significant work necessary to prepare for ordering its first nuclear power plant.

NIGERIA yesterday took a more pragmatic step towards generating power from nuclear energy as it officially unveiled a 10-year strategic plan of action. Meanwhile, the Minister of State for Finance Remi Babalola, said yesterday that the Federal Government had released in full the capital budget for this year to all its ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) since October ending. This is coming as Nigeria was certified by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as having met the first requirement set by the agency for countries wishing to generate power from nuclear energy. Nigeria is now ready to undertake the significant work necessary to prepare for ordering its first nuclear power plant.

The Pinon Ridge Uranium Mill to be located 12 miles west of Naturita got initial approval Friday on its application to build a mining facility. But that doesn't mean the Paradox Valley plant is anywhere near approved to actually be built, said Warren Smith, community involvement manager for the radiation program of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. All Friday's announcement means is Energy Fuels Resources Corp. had all the pieces it needed to go forward with the next licensing phase, which is far more technical, he said. Smith said the approval triggers a yearlong comprehensive technical review by the department, which means the company will have to provide detailed information about various aspects of the project's construction and hold a series of formal public hearings on each.

The Pinon Ridge Uranium Mill to be located 12 miles west of Naturita got initial approval Friday on its application to build a mining facility. But that doesn't mean the Paradox Valley plant is anywhere near approved to actually be built, said Warren Smith, community involvement manager for the radiation program of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. All Friday's announcement means is Energy Fuels Resources Corp. had all the pieces it needed to go forward with the next licensing phase, which is far more technical, he said. Smith said the approval triggers a yearlong comprehensive technical review by the department, which means the company will have to provide detailed information about various aspects of the project's construction and hold a series of formal public hearings on each.

In late 2009 Indonesia revived a proposal to build a nuclear power facility on the seismically active Muria Peninsula of north central Java over sustained civil society opposition including the voice of moderate Islam. The following assessment by Richard Tanter, Arabella Imhoff and David Von Hippel poses a range of issues about siting decisions in light of state-society relations and nuclear power feasibility. The issues are as relevant to mature democracies as to "emerging democracies," as Indonesia is now sometimes styled. Muria poses formidable challenges to Indonesian democracy while posing equally important questions about the nation's developmental trajectory. The siting of airports, dams, and nuclear power plants, are all examples of major siting decisions and contestations. As Daniel Aldrich observes in Site fights: Divisive Facilities and Civil Society in Japan and the West (Cornell University Press, 2008), even within democracies, some targeted communities have low potential for resistance. More generally, he terms siting decisions targeting vulnerable social elements, as "public bads," as opposed to "public goods," the latter conferring public benefits. Rather than neutral technocratic grounds, he shows, official frequently single out localities with weak civil societies for controversial siting decisions. Moreover, coercive measures are frequently employed, as opposed to incentive packages such as those frequently cited in the NIMBY literature. Only intense societal resistance obliges the state to adopt soft solutions.

In late 2009 Indonesia revived a proposal to build a nuclear power facility on the seismically active Muria Peninsula of north central Java over sustained civil society opposition including the voice of moderate Islam. The following assessment by Richard Tanter, Arabella Imhoff and David Von Hippel poses a range of issues about siting decisions in light of state-society relations and nuclear power feasibility. The issues are as relevant to mature democracies as to "emerging democracies," as Indonesia is now sometimes styled. Muria poses formidable challenges to Indonesian democracy while posing equally important questions about the nation's developmental trajectory. The siting of airports, dams, and nuclear power plants, are all examples of major siting decisions and contestations. As Daniel Aldrich observes in Site fights: Divisive Facilities and Civil Society in Japan and the West (Cornell University Press, 2008), even within democracies, some targeted communities have low potential for resistance. More generally, he terms siting decisions targeting vulnerable social elements, as "public bads," as opposed to "public goods," the latter conferring public benefits. Rather than neutral technocratic grounds, he shows, official frequently single out localities with weak civil societies for controversial siting decisions. Moreover, coercive measures are frequently employed, as opposed to incentive packages such as those frequently cited in the NIMBY literature. Only intense societal resistance obliges the state to adopt soft solutions.

"Councillors in Cumbria have come out against plans which could see new nuclear power stations built on greenbelt land. Three sites - at Sellafield, Braystones and Kirksanton - have been highlighted by the government as being suitable for new generating stations. But county councillors say they will only support a new station on the site of the existing Sellafield facility. "

"A fledgling company's plan to build a 3,000 megawatt nuclear power plant near the Green River in eastern Utah is generating more questions than answers. What would happen to the spent nuclear fuel from the two-reactor plant proposed by Utah-based Blue Castle Holdings? If the Utah Division of Water Rights deems there is enough water in the Green River for the plan, what happens to 50,000 acre feet of water required each year to cool it? Who would get the electricity generated by the plant? And last, but not least, is the proposal economically feasible, or would it require federal loan guarantees and tax incentives? And are those means available? "

"S.C. Electric & Gas Co. has won approval for a revised production schedule for the two nuclear reactors it intends to build in Fairfield County. The utility applied to the S.C. Public Service Commission last year to revise parts of its construction schedule while not adjusting the final target dates for the two reactors to be ready, in April 2016 and January 2019. In its filing, the utility asserted that the schedule changes were necessary as it gets contracts in place for plant construction and the fabrication of components. The filing had been opposed by the Friends of the Earth environmental group. It cited concerns that the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission has raised over the Westinghouse reactor design that SCE&G plans to use. Delays in federal approval of that design would keep SCE&G from keeping its schedule, the group argued, but the Public Service Commission did not agree. SCE&G said that it will press Westinghouse to address the federal agency's concerns and keep its schedule intact. Changes to the project's capital cost schedule that resulted from the revised schedule also were approved by the commission."

"Constellation Energy's new partner, EDF of France, briefed lawmakers on Wednesday on its plan to build a nuclear power plant in Maryland. The briefing was billed as a meet-and-greet for lawmakers to meet those who hold the future of Maryland's nuclear energy industry in their hands. Members of the group are from France and the UK. The state Public Service Commission approved the deal allowing EDF to partner with Constellation. EDF executives went to Annapolis to introduce themselves and brief legislators on their nuclear ambitions -- specifically, building a new nuclear power plant at the Calvert Cliffs site."

"GOVERNMENT officials were grilled by 350 members of the public over plans to build a nuclear power plant in Kirksanton. Angry residents made their voices heard with calls for the Department of Energy and Climate Change to pull the plug on the project. The meeting, held on Saturday at Millom School, followed a three-day exhibition in Millom Network Centre."

Wisconsin's business community is divided over Gov. Jim Doyle's clean energy plan that calls for increasing the use of renewable fuels and opens the door to nuclear power, with opponents saying the new mandates will weaken Wisconsin's already struggling manufacturing sector. Doyle's plan was introduced in the Legislature on Wednesday and the governor discussed it Thursday at a news conference in Madison. He and other proponents, including large employers like auto parts and building products maker Johnson Controls, argue it will improve the environment and create thousands of green-energy jobs.

Wisconsin's business community is divided over Gov. Jim Doyle's clean energy plan that calls for increasing the use of renewable fuels and opens the door to nuclear power, with opponents saying the new mandates will weaken Wisconsin's already struggling manufacturing sector. Doyle's plan was introduced in the Legislature on Wednesday and the governor discussed it Thursday at a news conference in Madison. He and other proponents, including large employers like auto parts and building products maker Johnson Controls, argue it will improve the environment and create thousands of green-energy jobs.

"AN anti-nuclear group is heading to Westminster to voice its feelings on the future of the nuclear industry. Marianne Birkby, founder of South Lakes anti-nuclear group Radiation Free Lakeland, will speak to the Parliamentary Select Committee Inquiry on January 27. Three new sites in Cumbria have been identified as suitable for new nuclear power stations - Kirksanton, Sellafield and Braystones. Public consultation is currently on-going. Ms Birkby said: "The nuclear juggernaut will only be stopped by people saying no - as people are doing in Germany where 50,000 people of all walks of life, including convoys of farmers on tractors marched in Berlin opposing the proposed extension of the life of existing nuclear plants - no one in Germany is proposing new build and certainly no country in the world is proposing such a blanket nuclear sacrifice zone in such a small area as the UK government"."

"AREVA Federal Services LLC, out of Charlotte, N.C., has been awarded a basic ordering agreement for design and fabrication of the Tokamak Cooling Water System for the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor. The cooling system is one of the major U.S. contributions to the international fusion project, and AREVA will oversee and integrate industry work on components via task orders and subcontracts, according to Ned Sauthoff, the project chief for U.S. ITER."

"According to Homestake Project Manager Al Cox, he has been waiting for re-approval of the existing permit for several years and is now requesting a third pond, EP3, to speed up the process of reclamation. If approved by the New Mexico Environmental Department, EP3 would be constructed on HMC property on Sections 22 and 23, approximately 1,800 feet north of County Road 63. A 50-foot wide access corridor will be constructed to access the proposed pond and to locate piping and associated infrastructure to the pond area. Cox said that the pond can be constructed in 90 to 120 days and would cost approximately $2.5 million."

"South Korea, which won its first overseas order to build a nuclear power plant in December, aims to secure $400 billion of contracts by 2030 as demand for atomic energy increases. The nation plans to get orders to build 80 nuclear plants by then and control 20 percent of the global market share, the Ministry of Knowledge Economy said in an e-mailed statement today. South Korea will become the world's third-largest nuclear plant exporter, according to the ministry. State-run Korea Electric Power Corp. led a group that beat Areva SA, the world's biggest nuclear power plant builder, and General Electric Co. in winning an order from the United Arab Emirates, the first awarded by a Gulf Arab nation. France, the U.S., Canada, Japan and Russia are currently the biggest exporters of atomic generators. "

"A barrage of domestic news reports have highlighted the Dec. 27 Korea-United Arab Emirates (UAE) contract, pointing out that a Korean consortium is scheduled to design, build and operate nuclear power plants for the Middle East country's energy program for the next 60 years. As the first case of Korea's export of nuclear technology, there is no doubt that the multibillion-dollar contract is a major economic, technological and diplomatic achievement for the country, which built its first commercial nuclear plant in 1978. However, a closer look at foreign media reports, including those from the UAE, indicates that the deal is not as lucrative as projected by the domestic reports. One of the most glaring discrepancies between domestic and foreign reports is the exact size of the contract procured by the Korean consortium - led by the Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) - to provide four APR1400, a Korean-made nuclear power unit that has yet to make a domestic debut. Following a decision that selected Korea over France as the winner of the largest-ever energy deal awarded in the Middle East, the Emirates News Agency reported that "the value of the contract for the construction, commissioning and fuel loads for four units equaled approximately $20 billion, with a high percentage of the contract being offered under a fixed-price arrangement.""

"The cantons of Bern, Solothurn and Aargau say they will not sign the agreement on the allocation of tax revenues from new nuclear plants. The three say not one of the solutions is satisfactory either legally or politically and it should be the electricity companies who come up with an agreement. The Senate had asked each canton to submit a proposal in anticipation of the building of new nuclear plants."

"Local residents say they have been 'insulted' rather than 'consulted' over Government plans for new nuclear power stations Local campaign groups have given a damning verdict on Government engagement with local communities over its plans for new nuclear power stations and have called for a new round of consultations to take place. The groups, representing residents in ten of the communities earmarked by the Government as potential sites for new reactors, gave evidence to MPs from the Energy and Climate Change Committee earlier this week. Jim Duffy, from campaign group Stop Hinkley, told MPs that the timing, advertising and location of the consultations had been unacceptable. "

"he three energy companies - Fennovoima, Fortum, and Teollisuuden Voima TVO - who are applying for a licence to build new nuclear facilities in Finland have begun to fear that the handling of the matter could get out of control in Parliament when political manoeuvering starts. This could happen if the number of licences to be proposed by the government is more than one. If the government decides to propose that only one licence should be granted, no problems are likely to occur. In that case, Parliament can only either pass or reject the bill as the Nuclear Energy Act states."

"Proposal for eight new reactors and nuclear fuel reprocessing faces public opposition. Like most countries that embraced nuclear power decades ago, Japan has soured on the technology in recent years. But prompted by worries about climate and energy security, the country's industry ministry last week placed a big bet on a rapid expansion of its nuclear power capability."

"The use of nuclear power to generate electricity is growing worldwide. More than 100 nuclear power plants are under construction or in various stages of planning, and many existing plants are expanding. [See the figure.] nuclear reactors under constructionPresident Obama recently announced an $8.33 billion federal loan guarantee for the construction of a pair of nuclear reactors in Georgia. The president also said he wants to triple the amount of loans the federal government guarantees in order to jumpstart seven to 10 new nuclear power projects over the next decade. The guarantees should lower borrowing costs and make financing easier to obtain. However, until the government meets its legal obligation to provide storage for spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste, only a few new nuclear reactors are likely to be built. Fortunately, solutions are available if the government is willing to embrace them."