Leah McGrath Goodman, Tony Blair and issues on torture (with added radiation)
Published by arclight2011- date 15 Sep 2012 -nuclear-news.net
[…]
Accusations: Despite the mockery of the film Borat, leaked U.S. cables suggest the country was undemocratic and used torture in detention
Other dignitaries at the meeting included former Italian Prime Minister and ex-EU Commission President
Romano Prodi. Mr Mittal’s employees in Kazakhstan have accused him of ‘slave labour’ conditions after a series of coal mining accidents between 2004 and 2007 which led to 91 deaths.
[…]
Last week a senior adviser to the Kazakh president said that Mr Blair had opened an office in the capital.Presidential adviser Yermukhamet Yertysbayev said: ‘A large working group is here and, to my knowledge, it has already opened Tony Blair’s permanent office in Astana.’
It was reported last week that Mr Blair had secured an £8 million deal to clean up the image of Kazakhstan.
[…]
Mr Blair also visited Kazakhstan in 2008, and in 2003 Lord Levy went there to help UK firms win contracts.
[…]
Max Keiser talks to investigative journalist and author, Leah McGrath Goodman about her being banned from the UK for reporting on the Jersey sex and murder scandal. They discuss the $5 billion per square mile in laundered money that means Jersey rises, while Switzerland sinks.
And as well as protecting the guilty child sex/torturers/murderers of the island of Jersey I believe that they are also protecting the tax dodgers from any association.. its just good PR!
FORMER Prime Minister Tony Blair was reportedly involved in helping to keep alive the world’s biggest takeover by Jersey-incorporated commodities trader Glencore of mining company Xstrata.
11/September/2012
[…]
Mr Blair was said to have attended a meeting at Claridge’s Hotel in London towards the end of last week which led to the Qatari Sovereign wealth fund supporting a final revised bid from Glencore for its shareholding. Read more »
First Uranium company teeters on the brink of collapse
What will happen to First Uranium? First Uranium is looking at a distress sale of assets to settle upcoming debts, a move that would have a number of implications for shareholders Christy Filen , 22 Feb 2012 JOHANNESBURG (MINEWEB) -
It is no secret that First Uranium is in a pickle. Releasing a forecast that shows its cash will run out by the end of March will be cold comfort to shareholders and creditors alike…. First Uranium has turned to what is conceivably its only option and that is a distress sale of its assets in an effort to settle upcoming debts….. As if this wasn’t enough First Uranium’s Ezulwini operation is not making the gradeand its Mine Waste Solutions (MWS) is fighting licensing issues with environmentalists and the Department of Mineral Resources. In terms of the results of an impairment exercise of the Ezulwini Mine’s assets, an impairment adjustment of $180m was recognised in the company’s financial statements…. ”The Company’s ability to continue as a going concern is dependent upon its ability to bring these proposed transactions to fruition” said First Uranium…..
http://www.mineweb.com/mineweb/view/mineweb/en/page34?oid=145826&sn=Detail&pid=102055
Cameco uranium company cuts production in view of nuclear industry slowdown
Cameco outlook sours amid doubts on nuclear’s future * Company sees 2012 revenue flat to down 5 percent
* Eyes lower production in 2012
* Shares down 1 pct at C$23.12
TORONTO, Feb 10 (Reuters) – Uranium producer Cameco forecast lower sales and highlighted doubts about the takeup of nuclear power in its stronger than expected quarterly results, and its shares edged lower on Friday, ……
Cameco, the world’s No.1 publicly-listed uranium producer, also lowered its 2012 uranium production outlook by 3 percent to 21.7 million pounds and said delays and cancellations after last year’s Fukushima nuclear disaster could hit prices.
Germany, which represents about 5 percent of the global market for uranium, plans to phase out its reactors by 2022.
Japan shut down most of its reactors for testing after the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami that crippled the Fukushima Daiichi power plant, and is expected to take its remaining three reactors offline for maintenance in the next few months.
“It remains unclear what level of nuclear power Japan itself – which represents 12 percent of global nuclear generating capacity – will depend on in the future,” Cameco said.
AREVA’s nuclear sales losses partly offset by renewable energy profits
Areva Reports Fall In 2011 Revenue On Nuclear Concerns –Areva reported full year revenue hit by the effects of Fukushima on the nuclear industry - WSJ By Nadya Masidlover 26 Jan 12, PARIS (Dow Jones)–French state-controlled nuclear engineering firm Areva SA Thursday reported 2011 consolidated revenue down 2.6%, as nuclear operations were hit by growing concern on atomic energy following the Fukushima nuclear accident in March 2011.
The company said that revenue fell to EUR8.87 billion from EUR9.1 billion a year earlier, below analysts’ expectations of EUR8.99 billion.
Areva posted a full-year revenue down 1.2% on a like-for-like basis however revenue in the fourth quarter was stable at EUR2.92 billion, falling 0.5% on a like-for-like basis…. The company said that a decrease in nuclear operations revenue was partly offset by growth in renewable energies business which rose 98.2% to EUR297 million.
EDF’s nuclear plans for Britain are fraught with problems
No easy ride for EDF’s plans for new nuclear, Greenpeace by Richardg – 25 January 2012 Despite the growing shift of support away from nuclear energy in Europe, EDF is stubbornly pushing forward plans to build a new nuclear reactor in the UK, without sufficient consideration for all the relevant risks….. the French state-owned company EDF Energy is trying to build a new nuclear reactor at Hinkley Point in Somerset.
EDF applied for planning permission in late October, less than three weeks after Britain’s nuclear watchdog – the Office of Nuclear Regulation – published a long list of improvementsneeded to protect Britain’s nuclear reactors. Given the scale of the recommendatons in the list, it is not possible for EDF to have incorporated all those improvements into its proposals in just three weeks. Lessons are still being learned following Fukushima (such as ‘don’t delete the minutes of the disaster response meetings’). EDF’s rush to apply for planning permission betrays their cavalier attitude and suggests they can’t have fully considered the implications of the Fukushima disaster.
We are seriously concerned that the flood defences, the emergency response plans and other vital safety features (such as a secure supply of off-site electricity during an emergency) aren’t fit for purpose. There’s a distinctly slap-dash feel to the application: as though EDF were more concerned with keeping the wheels on their nuclear gravy train than with making sure their plans stood up to scrutiny.
We’re not the only ones with concerns about the proposals. EDF’s planning application is also facing fierce opposition from local campaign groups, nuclear experts and Members of Parliament. Local councils have made their own representations, pointing out problems withtraffic levels, waste storage and the impact on tourism.
With 1,200 people registering to comment on their ill-thought out proposals, EDF shouldn’t expect an easy ride. We’ll keep you posted.
http://www.greenpeace.org.uk/blog/climate/no-easy-ride-edfs-plans-new-nuclear-20120125
Cameco uranium company talks big, but future is doubtful
Uranium miners still waiting on that rebound, TIM KILADZE, Globe and Mail , January 24, 2012 When stocks of uranium miners plummeted after last March’s traumatizing Japanese earthquake, some people expected a rebound once the market’s initial shocks and fears subsided.
They’re still waiting.
Close to a year after the earthquake, shares of Cameco Corp. (CCO-T23.54-0.25-1.05%) are still down 40 per cent and smaller rivals are faring just as badly, with Denison Mines (DML-T1.89-0.12-5.97%) down about 50 per cent. The death knell apparently came when Germany declared a retreat from nuclear energy.
Are these miners doomed for good? Depends on who you ask. Investors are clearly too scared to go near the industry, considering the stocks have moved very little since their initial free fall. (Check out a stock chart for the past year.
Quite scary.) But the companies themselves keep saying that everyone has it wrong.
Cameco chief financial officer Grant Isaac repeated this view when he sat down at CIBC World Market’s Whistler conference last week….. there’s still a major problem. Even if Cameco is bullish over the next decade, its consumers, particularly utilities, like to secure long-term supply contracts, and Cameco can’t talk long-term contracts when they would have to lock-in at today’s prices.
So for now, Cameco is touting plans to increase production. Mr. Isaac said Cameco is sitting on 1 billion pounds of reserves and resources, and the firm wants to bump production from 2 per cent of this a year to 4 per cent.
On this front, investors are cautious. Much of this growth centres on developing the second shaft of Cameco’s Cigar Lake project in northern Saskatchewan, and it’s been plagued with problems…..
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/investment-ideas/streetwise/uranium-miners-still-waiting-on-that-rebound/article2313513/
Nuclear fuel plant unable to get loan guarantee
‘Crunch time’ at troubled nuclear fuel plant Washington Post By Steven Mufson, January 13 U.S. Enrichment Corp., which produces fuel for nuclear power plants, is having its own sort of meltdown.
Disillusioned investors have wiped out 95 percent of the company’s market value since 2007. Standard & Poor’s has saddled it with a dismal CCC-plus credit rating. Read more »
Virginia Uranium seeks public subsidy to cover long term damage
Virginia Uranium is seeking a public subsidy to cover the risks associated with their venture. This could result in a scenario not unlike the recent public bailout that covered the sub-prime loan risks taken by mortgage banks.
Uranium offers short-term boost, long-term risks, Star-Tribune Peter Hairston January 4, The long-awaited National Research Council, or NRC, report on uranium mining in Virginia concludes, as one could expect, that there are benefits and risks to uranium mining.
The potential public benefits to the Pittsylvania County region have been estimated and extensively publicized. What has not been given due attention in the NRC report or in public discourse is the allocation of the public risks in relation to the potential private benefits.
When this is considered in light of the basic, conservative principles of free market economics, it is clear that current uranium mining plans will result in the public bearing the principal risks, while the mining company gains the principal profits. Read more »
Nuclear company AREVA failing in nuclear and uranium sales
Tough times for French nuclear giant Areva, Daily Press, Virginia, 27 Dec 11 These are difficult days for French nuclear giant Areva. The company announced earlier this month it would shed 1,500 jobs in Germany and suspend a controversial nuclear enrichment plant project in Idaho. It is trying to offset losses this year that could exceed $2 billion, the Associated Press reported.
Areva partnered with Newport News Shipbuilding to build a $363 million plant that would manufacture nuclear power plant components. Located off Huntington Avenue in Newport News, the plant is stalled indefinitely due to a lack of new nuclear projects in the U.S.
Another pertinent detail about Areva: the company said its earnings could be hurt by the drop in new reactors being built worldwide — fallout from the nuclear disaster in Japan. The company said this will also depress the price of uranium…..
http://www.dailypress.com/news/science/dead-rise-blog/dp-tough-times-for-french-nuclear-giant-areva-20111227,0,2218239.story?track=rss
Tepco asks Japan’s government for additional 6 billion pounds
Japan‘s biggest utility, known as Tepco, faces costs of trillions of yen for compensation and cleanup, and the Japanese government agreed only two months ago to provide £7bn through a bailout fund. Read more »
AREVA in trouble, and who will buy their nuclear reactors?
French nuclear energy Under pressure France wants to export nuclear reactors. Who will buy them? The Economist Dec 17th 2011 | PARIS On December 12th Areva, France’s
state-owned nuclear champion, said it would take a €2.4 billion ($3.1 billion) charge against profits. This will give the firm its first ever operating loss, of perhaps €1.6 billion for 2011.
That hurts. Areva is the world’s only one-stop nuclear shop, selling everything from uranium to fuel recycling. Read more »
Shrinking nuclear and uranium markets add to AREVA’s woes
The company has lost contracts worth hundreds of millions of euros….The company says its earnings will be
hit by a reduction in the number of new reactors being built, which will also depress the price of uranium…
.. the market is now shrinking. Areva said it expects to make an operating loss of between 1.4 and 1.6 billion euros (1.9 and 2.1 billion dollars) in 2011 mainly due to the depreciation of African mining assets…..
all activities in Namibia are to be suspended….
Fukushima hits French nuclear giant hard, Monsters and Critics, By Ralf E Krueger Dec 13, 2011“……….Areva’s new chief executive Luc Oursel announced the suspension of a planned nuclear enrichment plant project in Idaho in the United States, as well as several projects in Africa. Areva has also suspended plans to expand capacity at its reprocessing plant in La Hague, northern France. Read more »
Another blow to AREVA in poor outlook for uranium mine
UraMin deal was a wager on new power stations Financial Times, By David Blackwell, 14 Dec11“…..Areva’s purchase of UraMin was a long-term bet that power stations would be built around the world to meet concerns about energy security and climate change – as new reactors typically require a lot more uranium than those that have been in operation for some time.
Even before this year’s Fukushima disaster in Japan, Areva’s willingness to pay such a premium was in question as the price of unenriched “yellow-cake” uranium fell to $70 a pound, from $138 a pound around the time of the acquisition.
Since Fukushima, the price has fallen even further to about $50 a pound. Coupled with Monday’s announcement that deposits at UraMin’s mines were far smaller than expected, Areva has taken a hit – both to its balance sheet and to a mining business that accounted for 40 percent of its capital spending between 2007 and
2011….
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/6506add8-2592-11e1-9cb0-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1gWdl0WlU
South Africa’s huge nuclear power tender, but will there be graft?
R1tn nuclear tender raises graft fears, Times Live South Africa, ANNA MAJAVU | 24 November, 2011 Concern is mounting about the government’s planned R1-trillion nuclear power station tender, with opposition parties demanding reassurances from Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe that the tender will not be “mired in corruption” like the R70-billion arms deal.
It will be the biggest tender ever issued in South Africa . ”The multibillion-rand arms deal, which was just a fraction of this cost, was mired in corruption,” said DA parliamentary leader Lindiwe Mazibuko. “There are reports that the government is being strongly lobbied about this tender by companies such as Areva and Westinghouse who are desperate to get in on the action.”….
African Christian Democratic Party MP Cheryllyn Dudley asked if the government had budgeted money for handling nuclear waste, which remains hazardous for more than 200000 years…. The cabinet approved a 20-year energy plan for South Africa in March. It stipulates that 23% of the energy supply be derived from nuclear power.
Parliament’s portfolio committee on energy visited France last year and met representatives of nuclear energy corporation Areva. They told the MPs that their company was ready to build six nuclear power plants in South Africa.
http://www.timeslive.co.za/politics/2011/11/24/r1tn-nuclear-tender-raises-graft-fears
Australian uranium companies further down the drain
Oz Minerals pulls out of Toro uranium JV,9 News, 19 Nov 11 OZ Minerals has pulled out of a uranium exploration joint venture with Toro Energy in South Australia, saying no economic uranium has yet been found at the Mt Woods project.
The Toro board has accepted a $3.75 million cash offer from OZ Minerals as consideration for the termination, Toro said in astatement on Friday. ”No potentially economic uranium results have been reported from the Mt Woods project,” Toro said…. Shares in Toro were down 3.41 per cent at 8.5 cents at 1540 AEDT while OZ Mineral shares were 1.89 per cent weaker, compared to losses in the broader market of about 1.8 per cent.
http://finance.ninemsn.com.au/newsbusiness/aap/8376270/oz-minerals-pulls-out-of-toro-uranium-jv
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