March, 2010

Operation of the two-unit Shimane nuclear power plant in Japan has been suspended following the discovering that some past inspections of equipment at the plant had not been properly conducted, Chugoku Electric Power Co announced.

The USA has signed with Vietnam for increased cooperation in the peaceful use of nuclear energy. Meanwhile, it has moved closer to opening nuclear trade with India with an agreement on nuclear fuel reprocessing.

Officials have conducted talks on Chinese involvement in civil nuclear power projects in both Belarus and Pakistan, where Chashma 3 and 4 now look closer to reality.

France's Areva has signed a contract to supply mixed oxide (MOX) fuel for use in unit 3 of Hokkaido Electric Power Co's Tomari nuclear power reactor in Japan.

The decommissioning of two of the UK's oldest nuclear power plants have reached major milestones with the final removal of uranium from Chapelcross and the removal of asbestos cladding from Calder Hall.

Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (Kaeri) and Korean steelmaker Posco have signed an agreement to jointly study technologies for advanced nuclear reactor systems. Meanwhile, Korean researchers have developed software to ensure optimal operation of power reactors.

The Wylfa site has been picked as the first for new build by Horizon Nuclear Power, while the choice of reactor design is still being made.

A reserve of low-enriched uranium is to be set up in Russia, according to an agreement the country made with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) today.

India has 19 nuclear reactors supplying power to the grid after the synchronisation of Rajasthan Atomic Power Project unit 6 (RAPP 6). Reactor power will now gradually be increased, all the while supplying India's Northern Grid. Once final tests have been carried out and the reactor is at full power...

Japanese trading house Itochu has agreed to acquire a 15% share of Kalahari Minerals plc, giving it an interest in the Rössing South uranium deposit in Namibia.

The Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec have pulled out of an agreement that would have seen Hydro-Quebec acquire most of NB Power's generation assets including the Point Lepreau nuclear power station.

Entergy's proposal to spin off six nuclear power plants, including three in New York state, into a new company called Enexus has been rejected by the New York Public Service Commission (NYPSC), which said the move was not in the

Status updates from NRG and AECL explained the difficulties in conducting major repairs on the world's two biggest medical isotope production reactors.

Exelon has submitted an application to the US nuclear regulator for an early site permit (ESP) for the construction of a new nuclear power plant in Victoria County, Texas. It has also formally withdrawn it application for a combined construction and operating licence (COL) for the proposed plant.

It appears that it is not only Australia's federal government that is interested in a site in Northern Territory, proposed for a national radioactive waste repository. According to Ray Aylett, manager of Muckaty Station, UFOs have been hovering over Tennant Creek, where two sites are under consideration...

Toshiba subsidiary Westinghouse is to assume the long term management of the Springfields nuclear fuel manufacturing site in the UK under an agreement with the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA).

UK greenhouse gas emissions continued to decline in 2009, partly thanks to increased use of nuclear power. Meanwhile, the latest budget by the country's government announced a Green Investment Bank to support the move to a low-carbon economy.

Nuclear energy is a highly competitive energy option for the production of baseload electricity, the OECD's Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) and the International Energy Agency (IEA) have concluded in their latest joint study into generating costs.

Lithuania's shut down Ignalina nuclear power plant has been issued a licence by the country's nuclear regulator to construct a very low-level radioactive waste facility at the site.

In a move suggesting growing confidence in USEC's American Centrifuge technology, the US Department of Energy (DoE) has agreed to provide the company with $45 million in funding for its ongoing technology demonstration and manufacturing activities.

The first re-use of nuclear fuel in a Candu reactor has started at a Chinese nuclear power plant. Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd announced that fuel bundles containing recovered uranium from used fuel had been inserted into Qinshan Phase III unit 1.

China has approved the construction of a further 28 new nuclear reactors by 2020 under revised targets to meet rising energy demand and accelerate the development of the industry, according to media reports. Bloomberg and China Daily quoted Mu Zhanying, general manager of the state-run China Nuclear...

FPL Group has announced a proposal to change its name to NextEra Energy Inc. The change of name has already been approved by its board of directors and will be put forward for shareholder approval at its annual meeting, scheduled for 21 May. FPL said that the name change is intended to "better reflect...

RWE's Biblis A pressurised water reactor has restarted after over a year offline for €68 million ($92 million) of upgrades and modernisation work.

A public opinion poll in the USA shows that support for the use of nuclear power has reached a record high of over 60%. However, a separate poll of "opinion formers" in the USA and six European countries shows that, while support for nuclear is high, dealing with used nuclear fuel remains a...