November, 2009

New report provides detailed analysis of the Energy and Utilities market - By Stephen Heiser - Emerging Nuclear Power Countries: Market Analysis and Forecasts to 2020 "Emerging Nuclear Power Countries: Market Analysis and Forecasts to 2020" is the latest report from GlobalData. The report covers global nuclear power industry development and its growth trajectory following the emergence...

The seminar will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Hilton Washington DC/Rockville Hotel, 1750 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Md. It will be open to the public and participation can be in person or online through a webinar - By Stephen Heiser - The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission will conduct a quarterly public seminar on Dec. 3 in Rockville, Md., to provide information and guidance on how...

Henri Proglio has been a non-executive director of EDF since September 2004 - By Mark McFadden - Henri Proglio has been appointed today EDF Chairman and CEO by the Council of Ministers by decree. Born on 29th June 1949 in Antibes (France), Henri Proglio is a graduate of the Ecole des Hautes Etudes Commerciales (HEC). He joined the Compagnie Générale des Eaux in 1972 and was appointed...

AREVA T&D will supply its Smart Grid technology through its e-terraplatform and e-terramarket products to manage renewable energy assets (bulk and distributed energy resources) in real-time and to create real-time dynamic pricing for utility participants - By Stephen Heiser - On November 24, the United States Department of Energy announced the $178 million Pacific Northwest Smart Grid Demonstration...

IAEA Uses Sterile Insect Technique to Tackle Olive Fruit Fly - By April Murelio - Homer wrote about olives in his Odyssey, Hippocrates praised olive oil for its medicinal purposes and olive tree leaves were found in the tomb of Tutankhamen. The Olive Fruit Fly only lays its eggs in olives. It can infest up to 90% of a farmer´s fruit, damaging the crops and the livelihoods of the olive growers...

EDF and Centrica will form a separate 80/20 joint venture through which they will undertake the pre-development activities for a planned nuclear new build program - By April Murelio - Centrica plc has completed the purchase of its stake in British Energy through the acquisition of a 20 per cent equity stake in Lake Acquisitions from EDF, and the sale of its 51 per cent stake in the Belgian business...

The Evolution of the Pebble Bed Reactor - By Duncan Williams - One of the more promising nuclear reactor technologies known today is the pebble bed nuclear reactor. Offering many advantages over conventional reactors, the pebble bed reactor gets its name from the type of the nuclear fuel it consumes. Just like conventional reactors, the pebble bed reactor can fission uranium, thorium and/or...

Each 500-ton steam generator is 24.15 meters high and 3.8 meters in diameter. The pressurizer weighs in at 150 tons - By Stephen Heiser - The four steam generators1 and pressurizer2 that make up a nuclear reactor’s heavy components were delivered to the Olkiluoto 3 nuclear plant in Finland, having left their manufacturing plant in Chalon/St-Marcel (France) in late October. The components...

Originally published in the Hawaii Reporter - By Michael R. Fox Ph.D., - If this scandal of November 20, 2009 continues in the horrendous path it’s taken, it should be the end of the man-made CO2 global warming hypothesis. Beyond the warmers inability to prove their simple hypothesis after more than 20 years and $80 billion dollars, has been their collective bullying behavior patterns....

Majority of top 25 systems based on NNSA, DOE technology - By Stephen Heiser - National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) Administrator Thomas D’Agostino congratulates the Advanced Simulation and Computing program for two supercomputers ranked in the TOP Green500’s top 10 most energy-efficient supercomputers in the world as of November 2009. The two computers in the top 10...

Part of a Special Section covering the Nuclear Construction Summit USA 2009, October 26-27 – Washington DC The Nuclear Construction Summit, USA 2009 was attended by professionals who finance, plan and develop next nuclear projects. Professionals delivered information that will form blueprints for successful financing and construction risk assessment and management at every phase...

The decision to renew the licenses comes after thorough safety and environmental reviews of the application submitted September 2006 - By Mark McFadden - The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has renewed the operating licenses for the The decision to renew the licenses comes after thorough safety and environmental reviews of the application submitted September 2006 Steam Electric Station, Units 1...

The levels of contamination were low and do not pose a health or safety concern. No radioactivity left the site as a result of the event and there was no threat to public health and safety - By Stephen Heiser - The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is continuing to monitor Exelon’s actions in response to a radiation contamination incident at the Three Mile Island 1 nuclear power plant on Saturday...

An Exclusive Nuclear Street Interview with Dr. Daniel P. Aldrich, Author Of SITE FIGHTS: DIVISIVE FACILITIES AND CIVIL SOCIETY IN JAPAN AND THE WEST - By Randy Brich - One of the world's leading authorities on the incredibly important subject of siting controversial facilities, sociologist and author, Daniel P. Aldrich, Ph.D., kindly agreed to the following interview reproduced in its entirety...

NRC has said it usually takes about 22 months to make a decision on a license extension without a hearing or about 30 months with a hearing - By Christopher Smith - According to a report by Reuters, PG&E Corp said that it would seek to renew the licenses of the 2,240-megawatt Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant in California for an additional 20 years. Extending the licenses is "important...

Several major plant components were replaced during the outage, including the reactor vessel head, a main transformer, and expansion bellows - By Stephen Heiser - Unit 1 at the South Texas Project nuclear power facility has been refueled and is back online. STP Unit 1 returned to full power operation shortly after 11 a.m. today, following a 49-day shutdown for refueling and maintenance. Several...

We have much to be thankful this year at AEHI including significant progress at our nuclear sites in Idaho and Colorado; the start of construction on our first Energy Neutral house; our new office in Beijing and related new MOUs; and a new project office in Seoul working with the Koreans to import their advanced reactor to the U.S. - By Linton Levy - Alternate Energy Holdings, Inc. (AEHI): Supportive...

Part of a Special Section covering the Nuclear Construction Summit USA 2009, October 26-27 – Washington DC The Nuclear Construction Summit, USA 2009 was attended by professionals who finance, plan and develop next nuclear projects. Professionals delivered information that will form blueprints for successful financing and construction risk assessment and management at every phase...

Event cause traced to airflow change inside containment building - Edited by Randy Brich - Outage workers at Three Mile Island Unit 1 who were sent home Saturday evening returned to work Sunday and today and normal outage work has resumed. About 150 workers stationed in the containment building of TMI Unit 1, which was shut down nearly a month ago for a planned refueling outage and steam generator...

During the three-day gathering, delegates are expected to consider new Technical Cooperation projects requested by Member States, as well as the budget for 2010 - By Linton Levy - The annual meeting of the IAEA´s Technical Assistance and Cooperation Committee (TACC) has opened in Vienna. During the three-day gathering, delegates are expected to consider new Technical Cooperation projects...

Part of a Special Section covering the Nuclear Construction Summit USA 2009, October 26-27 – Washington DC The Nuclear Construction Summit, USA 2009 was attended by professionals who finance, plan and develop next nuclear projects. Professionals delivered information that will form blueprints for successful financing and construction risk assessment and management at every phase...

Turkey recently cancelled a 2008 tender won by a Russian-led consortium to build Turkey's first nuclear power plant after a top administrative court suspended parts of the regulation governing the process - By April Murelio - According to a report by the AFP, Turkey is determined to build a nuclear power plant and will launch a new project to replace a failed tender, Energy Minister Taner...

JASON’s review confirms the challenges associated with adding performance margin and incorporating modern safety and security features into aging weapons systems - By April Murelio - The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) has announced that it has transmitted a classified technical review of the Lifetime Extension Programs (LEPs) to the Congressional committee that requested...

Attached is the Office of the Inspector General’s (OIG) audit report titled, Audit of NRC’s Physical Security Inspection Program for Category I Fuel Cycle Facilities (OIG-10-A-01) - Edited by Stephen Heiser - The report presents the results of the subject audit. Agency comments provided during and subsequent to an August 26, 2009, exit conference have been incorporated, as appropriate...

Trends to watch for the near term include development of dozens of new, safer nuclear plants in China, India, and eventually the U.S. - By Stephen Heiser - Plunkett Research Ltd.’s newest market research and competitive analysis, report Plunkett’s Energy Industry Almanac, 2010 edition, covers everything from major oil companies to electric and gas utilities, plus pipelines, refiners...