July, 2011

New CEO says it is too soon to assess the full consequences of the Fukushima disaster on its long term strategy Areva, the French and mostly state-owned global nuclear giant, is sailing in uncharted waters as its new CEO seeks to get a grip on the firm’s strategic direction. The uncertainty has affected...

The heat is on across the United States. The nation’s 104 nuclear reactors are providing electricity to keep people cool without warming the planet.  Nuclear energy can help save habitat for polar bears. The 62nd Carnival of Nuclear Energy Blogs is online now at Next Big Future . This post is ...

The Blue Ribbon Commission calls for interim storage and finding a new geologic repository, but nixes reprocessing as a near term strategy A council of wise men and women is Washington is almost always called a “ Blue Ribbon Commission ,” which may make its members feel like a slice of prize peach pie...

The American Nuclear Society issued a comprehensive spent fuel report One day ahead of the Blue Ribbon Commission, which will have its report out tomorrow, the American Nuclear Society has its own review of spent fuel management options. In the current news cycle of all debt ceiling all the time it may...

Reactor refurbishment service will be a cash cow for SNC Lavalin with limited options for sales of new reactors This is my updated coverage of the sale of AECL originally reported in Fuel Cycle Week July 21, 20011, V10:N434 by International Nuclear Associates, Washington, DC On June 29 the government...

A report by a Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff task force calls for sweeping regulatory change, but also acknowledges that information about the Fukushima accident is unavailable, unreliable, or ambiguous. In the third of a continuing series, the ANS Nuclear Cafe explores a significant issue affecting...

The utility places a $100 million bet despite a hostile political environment The future of the Vermont Yankee nuclear reactor got a bit brighter this week as its owner and operator the Entergy Corp. ( NYSE:ETR ) announced its board of directors had approved the fabrication of fuel and the refueling...

The heat is on across the U.S.  The nation’s 104 nuclear reactors are providing electricity to keep people cool without warming the planet. This is the collective voice of the best pro-nuclear blogs in North America. If you want to hear the voice of the nuclear renaissance, the Carnival of Nuclear...

Domestic liability laws and international issues may be putting limits on the country's ambitious plans to build new reactors Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is in India this week to pressure India to open its nuclear energy markets by changing its domestic supplier liability laws. If she...

Japan Times says non-denial denials won’t wash The Japan Times has again reported that the U.S. and Japan are in negotiations with Mongolia to draft an agreement to create a facility there for management and disposal of spent nuclear fuel and nuclear fuel production. Map of uranium resources in Mongolia...

Governor Andrew Cuomo won't give up on his obsessive quest An unstoppable force has crashed into an immovable barrier in New York. Mayor Michael  Bloomberg (right) in late June went public with blistering criticism that rivals the city's summer heat that can fry eggs on the sidewalk. He...

Moving beyond Fukushima – the renaissance continues This is the collective voice of the best pro-nuclear blogs in North America. If you want to hear the voice of the nuclear renaissance, the Carnival of Nuclear Energy Blogs is where to find it. It is up this week at ANS Nuclear Cafe . Past editions have...

The agency alleges company officers used private placements to mislead investors The Associated Press reports that the Securities & Exchange Commission has amended the  agency's claims against would-be Idaho nuclear plant developer Don Gillispie, alleging in a new complaint that the company's...

Meltdowns in Japan drive an ambitious agenda in the U.S. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has released a "Near Term Report" ( full text ) this week that calls for a wide range of safety improvements for the U.S. fleet of 104 nuclear reactors. The report ominously calls for "redefining...

Long-term price contracts will make new nuclear reactors attractive to investors ( NucNet ) Plans to secure 110 billion pounds (174 billion US dollars, 124 billion euro) of  investment in electricity generation were unveiled in the UK July 12, including long-term price contracts with nuclear plants...

New safety measures will create delays, add costs The ambitious plans for construction of new nuclear reactors at eight sites in the U.K. took a hit this week. Reuters reports July 5 that EDF, the nation’s biggest utility, will push back the start date for its first new nuclear plant. Vincent de Rivaz...

Interest is growing in the class of units rated at 300 MW or less Recent developments in the field of small modular reactors (SMRs) suggest that the nuclear renaissance in the U.S. may come in two sizes. The first size, at ratings in terms of electricity generation of 1,000 MW or more, has a near term...

The 60th Carnival of Nuclear Energy Bloggers is up at Atomic Power Review .  This is the  first time this blog is participating in the carnival. If you want to hear the voice of the nuclear renaissance, the Carnival of Nuclear Energy Blogs is where to find it. Contrary to what the anti-nuclear...

Help comes from positive news for getting nuclear energy out of its defensive corner Recently, in a meeting room full of nuclear energy professionals, the spirit of doom and gloom from Japan’s Fukushima nuclear crisis was so apparent that even the bartender serving beverages from his portable bar had...

New U.S. reactor projects could languish if anti-nuclear groups succeed in pushing ’ Fukushima “Concerns” to stall the AP1000 Certification This is my updated coverage in Fuel Cycle Week for June 23, 2011, V10:N430 published by International Nuclear Associates, Washington, DC The four nuclear reactors...

Final UK Nuclear Proposals Back Eight Sites For Potential New-Build  ( NucNet ): The UK government today published its final proposals that name eight sites across the country as suitable for the construction of new nuclear plants by 2025. Presenting the proposals to parliament, minister of state...