February, 2012

IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano issued a statement.

29 Feb (NucNet): The oldest nuclear reactor still in commercial operation in the world was shut down permanently today.

28 Feb (NucNet): Two workers who died during the tsunami at the Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear plant in Japan were killed after they went to the unit 3 turbine building basement to check on the level of the surge tank for the turbine auxiliary cooling system...

27 Feb (NucNet): Japan has made a voluntary contribution of 730,000 US dollars (544,000 euro) to the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organisation (CTBTO), which will increase the organisation’s capabilities to monitor...

The IAEA Board of Governors will convene a meeting at the Agency’s headquarters starting at 10:30 CET on Monday, 5 March 2012, in Boardroom A of the M-Building, in the Vienna International Centre (VIC).

24 Feb (NucNet): Scientists in Canada have announced the successful production of the key medical isotope technetium-99m (Tc-99m) on existing cyclotrons – compact particle accelerators – in the provinces of Ontario and British Columbia.

23 Feb (NucNet): Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco) says it will begin cementing the seabed near the Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear plant to prevent radioactive materials from spreading at sea.

22 Feb (NucNet): The Takahama-3 nuclear reactor in Fukui, central Japan, was shut down yesterday for scheduled maintenance, leaving only two nuclear units out of 54 in commercial operation in the country.

A senior IAEA expert team is returning from Iran after two days of discussions with Iranian officials held on 20 and 21 February 2012.

21 Feb (NucNet): China’s National Energy Administration (NEA) has launched a series of research and development (R&D) projects to improve emergency response mechanisms for nuclear power plants in case of extreme disasters.

20 Feb (NucNet): Stress tests carried out as a result of the Fukushima-Daiichi accident show units 3 and 4 at the Ohi nuclear plant would not be damaged by a tsunami 9.5 metres higher and an earthquake 80 percent more powerful than allowed for in the...

An international team of senior nuclear safety and radiation protection experts today concluded a 12-day mission to review the regulatory framework for nuclear and radiation safety in Sweden.

17 Feb (NucNet): The UK and France are to sign a landmark agreement in Paris today to cooperate on civil nuclear energy, paving the way for the construction of a new generation of power plants in the UK.

10 Feb (NucNet): US utility Southern Company has confirmed construction is set to begin on the nation’s first two new nuclear units in more than 30 years at subsidiary Georgia Power’s Vogtle nuclear site in Georgia.

6 Feb (NucNet): Turkey's energy minister Taner Yildiz said on Saturday that Turkey would “show its determination” on nuclear energy by building a second nuclear plant

3 Feb (NucNet): The Nuclear Energy Agency will hold a workshop on crisis communications of nuclear regulatory organisations (NROs) from 9-10 May 2012 in Madrid, Spain.

2 Feb (NucNet): Finnish nuclear power company Fennovoima has received commercial bids from Areva and Toshiba for the Hanhikivi-1 nuclear unit which is planned for construction in the Pyhäjoki municipality in northern Finland.

Meetings between the IAEA and Iran were held in Tehran from 29 to 31 January 2012, aimed at resolving all outstanding substantive issues.