February, 2011

Progress Energy CEO Bill Johnson said new nuclear plant construction in the United State is not a matter of "if" but of "when" and "how" during a speech Wednesday at the Platts Nuclear Energy Conference outside Washington D.C. He went on to say that "today there’s an even more compelling case that greater use of nuclear power is a vital part of a balanced energy...

GE Hitachi has discovered unexpected cracking and material distortion in some of the companies' control-rod blades, according to a report made public Wednesday by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. GE Hitachi reported to NRC that the problems could present a safety hazard, and the design life of the companies' Marathon Blades may be reduced. Malfunction of control rods can limit operators'...

IBC Advanced Alloys Corp. has signed a memorandum of understanding with Global Nuclear Fuel America to study ways to make reactor fuel more efficient using beryllium oxide. The announcement follows two years of fuel research sponsored by IBC in an existing partnership with Texas A & M and Purdue Universities. Last fall, Purdue filed provisional patents related to the project, with IBC...

A moratorium on new nuclear power plants may come to an end in Minnesota, where the state's Senate recently voted to lift the ban, and the editorial board of state's largest newspaper on Wednesday endorsed the legislation. “Minnesota has boxed itself into an energy policy corner with statutes that effectively eliminate new coal and nuclear plants -- the two traditional workhorses of...

Among the 2012 budget proposals rolled out this week by the Obama administration, DOE's Office of Nuclear Energy emerged relatively unscathed amid wider efforts to trim federal spending. At $852.5 million, the proposal comes in less than 1 percent below what Congress appropriated for 2010. The nuclear office would spend 52 percent of the 2012 budget on research, development, demonstration and...

Lockheed Martin Corp. will contribute control room design and construction for GE and Hitachi's new nuclear reactor design, the companies announced Wednesday. Dan Heller, a Lockheed Martin vice president, characterized the partnership as the company's return to the civilian nuclear industry in an interview with Reuters. Lockheed Martin is best known as the word's largest military contractor...

Areva will shuffle the CEOs at three of its subsidiaries, the French energy group announced Wednesday, with Transnuclear Inc. chief operating officer Bob Grubb stepping in as acting president and CEO at that company starting March 1. Grubb holds a master's in science in civil engineering that he's put to use over 35 years in the nuclear and aerospace industries. According to his company...

One of the most notable elements of the Obama administration's 2012 budget proposal for the Department of Energy is what it leaves out: Funding to continue work on a nuclear waste storage facility in Nevada's Yucca Mountain. This year's proposal continues efforts first evident in the 2009 budget to end the nine-year project conceived to fix America's high-level waste storage problem...

More than a dozen Greenpeace protesters scaled a cooling tower in Spain Tuesday, breaching security and creating an emergency alert at one of the country's six nuclear power plants. With a Spanish regulatory agency considering whether to extend the plant's operating permit in the coming weeks, the protesters painted “Peligro” – danger in Spanish – on the 400-foot...

Attorneys general from New York, Connecticut and Vermont announced Tuesday that they plan to sue the Nuclear Regulatory Commission over a recent ruling on waste storage at nuclear plants. Specifically, they object to an NRC rule issued in late December that allows plants to keep spent fuel on site for 60 years after they close, as opposed to 30 years under previous law

Energy Secretary Stephen Chu made the case this week for $36 billion in new loan guarantees for nuclear plants in the Department of Energy's proposed 2012budget, while at the same time nearly halving funds for the department's Fossil Energy Office. The proposal underscores the Obama administration's goal to generate 80 percent of the country's electricity from clean sources by 2035...

Savannah River Remediation LLC (SRR) will hire approximately 40 college students for its summer internship program, mostly from local colleges and universities in North and South Carolina and Georgia. According to Jacqueline Mack, SRR Internship Coordinator, SRR is looking for students who are a U.S. citizen with a grade point average of 2.5 or greater, with an emphasis on students working on a...

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has concluded that there are no significant environmental impacts that would preclude licensing the proposed Eagle Rock Uranium Enrichment Facility in Bonneville County, Idaho.

The CEO of Power Generation Designs announced today that a patent has been issued (No 7,827,792) by the United States Patent and Trademark Office for the design improvement to the modern day nuclear powered electrical generating station’s Main Steam Condenser Cooling System. The Binary System improves the functional design of the electrical power generating unit, reducing fuel consumption and...

The NRC is submitting to Congress its FY 2012 budget request for $1.04 billion, representing a decrease of $28.7 million below the agency’s FY 2010 budget. The major changes include: A $20.5 million decline in reduced demand for operating reactors licensing activities; A $12.5 million increase for expected construction of two new reactors and additional advance reactor support; A...

AK Services Uses a Remote-Controlled Water Jet Cutting System to Cut Largest Access Ever in Active Department of Energy Radioactive Storage Tank Water jet contractor AK Services made history recently by cutting the largest-ever access hole in an active U.S. Department of Energy radioactive waste storage tank at the DOE’s Hanford Site in southeastern Washington. The Boston-area water jet contractor...

“We are pleased to welcome URS to the Eagle Rock team as we continue to move forward with the planning for this important energy facility” said AREVA Enrichment Services President and CEO, Sam Shakir URS Corporation has announced that it has been awarded a contract by AREVA Enrichment Services LLC (AES) to provide procurement, construction and management services for the Eagle Rock Enrichment...

Westinghouse Electric Company today announced that it has entered into a long-term agreement with South Carolina Electric & Gas Company (SCE&G), the principal subsidiary of SCANA Corporation, to provide nuclear fuel fabrication services for the V.C. Summer nuclear power plant in South Carolina.

“We are pleased that NFS is continuing its work in support of the nation’s critical defense programs.” The Babcock & Wilcox Company (B&W) announced today that its subsidiary Nuclear Fuel Services, Inc. (NFS) has been awarded a contract extension totaling approximately $79 million. The 2011 contract extension is for the continued manufacture and delivery of fuel and support...

The Nuclear Energy Institute's annual briefing for the financial community was held yesterday, in New York. NEI President and CEO Marvin Fertel's presentation, "Discipline Pays Dividends," described 2010 nuclear industry performance and trends; an assessment of progress toward new nuclear plant construction; and the changes in the politics of nuclear energy in Washington over the...

James Miller, chairman, president and CEO of Southern Nuclear Operating Co., provided an update at yesterdays Nuclear Energy Institute's annual briefing for the financial community. Plant Vogtle expansion project is proceeding with 1,500 new employees working at the site. The company anticipates that the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission will approve its application for a construction and operating...

Stephen Byrne, SCE&G's executive vice president of generation and chief operating officer, provided a construction update of units 2 & 3 at yesterday's Nuclear Energy Institute's annual briefing for the financial community. He said the company has spent $1.4 billion to date on the two-reactor expansion of the V.C. Summer nuclear power plant, and that its original cost projections...

Dominion expects to reap efficiencies in steam generator maintenance and other services under this new alliance agreement with AREVA,” said David Heacock, Dominion Chief Nuclear Officer. AREVA has signed an alliance agreement with Dominion Resources to provide standard and specialized services to all four Dominion nuclear power plants. This alliance covers steam generator services, specialty...

The NRC is seeking comments on a proposed rule that would amend Westinghouse’s certified AP1000 reactor design for use in the United States. The design certification process provides for early public participation and resolution of safety issues for proposed reactor designs. NRC certification, in the form of a final rule, means the design meets the agency’s applicable safety requirements...

The Shaw Group’s CEO, J.M. Bernhard Jr., delivered the keynote address at the Feb. 8, 2011, Construction Users Roundtable winter membership meeting in Baton Rouge, La. Attended by construction industry leaders, the meeting focused on the industry’s key issues, including safety, workforce development, international construction and future opportunities. Mr. Bernhard’s keynote...