nuclear-news

Even with gross subsidies, the nuclear industry is not viable. “Westinghouse Electric Company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Wednesday, saying it needed to restructure because of “certain financial and construction challenges” from its nuclear power plant projects.” http://www.voanews.com/a/westinghouse-chapter-11-bankurptcy/3786377.html

With Toshiba’s Westinghouse subsidiary filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the US taxpayer could end up losing billions due to the Federal loan guarantees facilitated by a Republican Congress in 2005, and handed over by Obama, and the head of the US Dept of Energy, Ernst Moniz. Obama was apparently owned by the nuclear industry, especially Exelon, and the wife of Moniz has Japanese roots. Ratepayers have been, and will be, scammed, as well. The chance of losing the taxpayer money was known to be in the range of 40 to 50% based on history, but it’s not their money so they didn’t care.

The Federal loan guarantee was given…

“… Paks [Nuclear Power Station] can only go ahead with public subsidies… The Hungarian government has mislead its people: Paks II is not economically viable and it will cost taxpayers dearly.” (András Perger, Greenpeace Hungary energy campaigner)

Rosatom is a State Corporation and thus is subordinate to the Russian President, rather than the government.

From Greenpeace:
“Commission green light for Paks state aid ignores Orbán takeover of nuclear regulator
Press release – March 6, 2017
Brussels – The European Commission has given a green light to state subsidies for the construction of the Paks II nuclear power plant in Hungary. The decision is irresponsible and ignores prime minister Viktor Orbán’s takeover of Hungary’s nuclear regulator, warned Greenpeace.

A new law approved by the Hungarian Parliament in early December allows the government to overrule the country’s nuclear regulator on matters related to the construction of nuclear reactors and…

From Greenpeace:
“Westinghouse bankruptcy underscores meltdown of the global nuclear industry – Greenpeace Press release – 29 March, 2017

Tokyo, 29 March 2017 – The board of Westinghouse’s parent company, Toshiba, today approved the filing of Chapter 11 bankruptcy for its drowning U.S. company – a defining moment in the decades-long downward spiral of the global nuclear power industry.

Toshiba/Westinghouse is responsible for building more nuclear reactors worldwide than any other entity. With the financial meltdown of Westinghouse, Toshiba also recently announced its plans to withdraw from foreign construction projects – a move that has far-reaching implications outside Japan and the US, such as the construction of three reactors in the UK at Moorside.



“If we look at how nuclear stacks up against renewables, it’s clearly in freefall. An estimated 147 gigawatts  of renewable power was added in 2015, compared to just 11 gigawatts for nuclear power in the…

Opinion:

¶ A Path To Prosperity That We Can All Embrace • Now, as President Trump charges through his first 100 days, there is a risky theme being pushed that a prosperous America comes with a choice between environmental protection and economic growth. This concept is not only false, but dangerous and short-sighted. [Forbes]

Shadow of a Montana wind turbine (Andrew Harrer / Bloomberg)

¶ Undoing the Clean Power Plan Will Be a Legal Nightmare • When it comes to the Clean Power Plan, Trump’s words are “legally not all that relevant,” according to a senior attorney at the National Resources Defense Council. That’s because the EPA is legally required to regulate greenhouse gases as pollutants under the Clean Air Act. [New Republic]

¶ Trump’s Pro-Coal Orders Are Doomed to Fail • Between the cuts to the EPA budget, the executive order, and the Administration’s sweeping…

Opinion:

¶ “The 150-Year-Old Energy Giant Ready To Disrupt The World (#CleanTechnica Original)” • Engie has been acquiring top startups in the various arenas it considers to be the biggest playing fields of the future. In energy, there are 5 “tsunamis” or 5 disruptive trends they see occurring all at approximately the same time. [CleanTechnica]

Thierry Lepercq, Engie’s Executive Vice President
of Research, Technology and Innovation

World:

¶ A summer of record high temperatures, heat waves, and unplanned electricity outages appears to have bolstered the Australian rooftop solar market in 2017. Installations at end of February are up nearly 50% on the same time last year. Growth in rooftop solar installs has not been limited to South Australia, but in all of the major states. [CleanTechnica]

¶ A new $3.9 million project led by a company in South Canterbury, New Zealand, aims to have 95% of…