2014 October 08 « nuclear-news

Chile forms the top market for renewable energy

Chilean geography makes nation the top market for renewable energy, Chicago Tribune
By Matt Craze, Bloomberg News,Bloomberg SANTIAGO, Chile — With the sunniest desert on Earth, a windswept coast and limited fossil fuel supplies, northern Chile has become the world’s top market for renewable energy.

The government of President Michelle Bachelet has approved 76 solar and wind projects since taking power March 11. Renewable energy developers are pursuing contracts to deliver electricity to mines run by by companies including Anglo American and BHP Billiton, which consume a third of the country’s power.

Renewable energy is now cheaper than electricity sold on Chile’s spot market, and with global demand for copper expected to increase, so will the need for power at mines in the remote Atacama desert. The wind and solar projects that have been approved will require as much as $7 billion to complete.

“Chile is the market with the highest level of activity in the world,” Ben Warren, head of Ernst & Young’s renewables team, said in a telephone interview from London………

“Despite being a small market we attracted all of the players because we have significant growth rates,” Finat said. “We have clear economic rules and political stability. And there is a gigantic amount of untapped renewable energy resources.” http://www.chicagotribune.com/sns-wp-blm-news-bc-chile07-20141007-story.html

October 8, 2014 Posted by Christina Macpherson | renewable, SOUTH AMERICA | Leave a comment

Volcanoes a rare risk to nuclear reactors, but consequences would be devastating

Difficulties remain in protecting nuclear plants from volcanic eruptions October 05, 2014 THE ASAHI SHIMBUN by Takeshi Nakashima and Chikako Kawahara The deadly eruption of Mount Ontakesan in central Japan has rekindled concerns about whether Japan’s nuclear power plants, such as the Sendai plant in Kagoshima Prefecture, have adequate safeguards for dealing with such a disaster………

Active volcanoes are located near the Sendai plant, with Mount Sakurajima about 50 kilometers away and Mount Kirishima about 60 km away.

In the past, huge volcanic eruptions have led to the formation of large calderas and pyroclastic flows in the area.

Major eruptions occur in Japan about once every 10,000 years. However, nuclear plants have to implement measures depending on the risk even if the frequency of an event is low.

Nuclear plants are not designed to withstand pyroclastic flows at high temperatures. For that reason, if such flows should reach a facility, the consequences could be disastrous.

Kyushu Electric insists that the possibility of an eruption while the Sendai plant is operating is sufficiently low. The utility also says it would be possible to capture signs of a major eruption and remove nuclear fuel beforehand.

The Nuclear Regulation Authority has supported Kyushu Electric’s position.

The removal of the nuclear fuel from the reactors is expected to take several years.

However, the Mount Ontakesan eruption once again demonstrated the limits to accurately predicting volcanic eruptions.

Concerns about the safety measures at the Sendai plant were raised at a Sept. 30 session of a special committee of the Kagoshima prefectural assembly. Some members raised doubts about whether early signs of an eruption could be detected. Others criticized Kyushu Electric’s position………http://ajw.asahi.com/article/behind_news/social_affairs/AJ201410050034

October 8, 2014 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Japan, safety | Leave a comment