…Westinghouse is also optimistic about opportunities in Eastern Europe – including in Bulgaria and Ukraine – and in South East Asian countries such as Vietnam….
“We see [Saudi Arabia] as a good market for us to not only grow our technology, but as a very fertile market as supply chain development,” said Danny Roderick, the chief executive of the United States-based firm owned by Toshiba.
Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil exporter, plans to seek preliminary bids for its first nuclear reactor next year.
The request for proposals could be for more than one reactor, the first of which would start construction in 2017 for completion in 2022, said Muhammad Garwan, the atomic energy team leader of the King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (Ka-Care), the government’s energy diversification planner.
Over a decade-long construction period, the country plans to add 18 gigawatts of nuclear power, which combined with 54GW of renewable energy, would represent half of the kingdom’s soaring power demand.
It would have to finalise a “123” cooperation pact with the US to enable it to buy nuclear technology from Westinghouse or other US firms.
Section 123 of the US Atomic Energy Act requires a specific agreement for significant transfers of nuclear material, equipment or components from the US to another nation.
“I still have high optimism that the 123 agreement will get made, but it is a very complex set of discussions right now, and both parties are going to have to come to the table and talk,” said Mr Roderick.
Westinghouse is supplying technology to the nuclear power plants being built in the UAE, which has a 123 agreement with the US.
…It was not immediately clear how Egypt would finance the plant, but since Mursi’s removal it has been offered $12 billion in aid from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates….
CAIRO (Reuters) – Egypt will launch an international tender in January to build its first nuclear power station, an Electricity Ministry spokesman said on Thursday before talks with Russian officials on cooperation between the two countries.
Egypt froze its nuclear programme after the 1986 nuclear disaster at Chernobyl, but announced in 2006 it planned to revive it. Plans for a tender were being prepared when President Hosni Mubarak was deposed in February 2011.
Aktham Abouelela, spokesman for the Electricity Ministry said: “The Nuclear Power Plants Authority plans to launch the first international tender in January to build a nuclear station in Dabaa,” near the Mediterranean coast.
“It will be a pressurised water reactor with a capacity of 950 to 1650 megawatts. The station will have two units,” Abouelela added.
Egypt’s economic outlook has been clouded by political uncertainty since Mubarak’s downfall, which set off turbulence that has chased away foreign investors and tourists. Islamist President Mohamed Mursi was ousted by the army in July in response to massive street protests against his rule.
Mr Takashige is undertaking his ‘Peace Run’, which will see him run 40,000 kilometres across five continents, and is currently on the leg that takes him across Australia and New Zealand.
This run will have two purposes, to continue his peace run and to raise money for the victims of the Fukushima tsunami.
Mr Takashige said it was important to help the young people living in Fukushima.
“Two years ago there was a big earthquake and tsunami, and I decided to donate to the victims, especially the kids of Fukushima,” he said.
“I want the kids to move from their home town to somewhere safer as soon as possible.”
The run began two years ago with his run across the USA from Los Angeles to New York, which took him over 5800 kilometres and 138 days to complete as he travelled across the prairies and Rocky Mountains.
Mr Takashige said he used to be a cyclist, and decided to cycle across several countries in 1994.
“I’m an ex-English teacher and I made up my mind to travel around the world by bike,” he said.
“I cycled across the United States, Canada, New Zealand and Australia, and I’m taking the same route again.”
In 1995 Mr Takashige cycled from Perth to Sydney, taking 85 days and 5500 kilometres to complete.
This included riding through the Nullarbor and Ceduna, which he said he felt a special connection with.
He said he likes to enjoy the great nature of Australia.
“Last time I crossed the Nullarbor Plain I was surprised to see the longest stretch of nothing but desert,” he said.
“We don’t see such an isolated place in Japan.”
After having a hard time in the Nullarbor during his first journey, he went into the region with a plan, including shopping for supplies in Esperance and Norseman.
He was also fortunate to be paid a visit by some of his friends from Japan while he was in Madura, who provided him with some of his favourite foods including rice and cookies.
Mr Takashige said while on the road he also received donations from people passing by.
“Many caravan drivers stopped to ask questions, and also offered canned food, frozen vegetables and water,” he said.
“I couldn’t imagine how kind the local people were, every day I received a lot of food and water, and have received around $600 in donations so far.”
While in Ceduna Mr Takashige stayed at the Ceduna Foreshore Caravan Park, which provided him with donations of water and money, as well as a pass to other caravan parks on Eyre Peninsula.
Some of the visitors who saw him on the road also provided him with donations for his cause.
Mr Takashige said he hoped to arrive in Sydney by the end of January, where he will fly to Aukland to begin his New Zealand leg.
From there he will depart back to Japan, and plans to continue the peace run next year through Europe, Africa and South America.
He said he hopes to meet as many people as possible in his journey around the world.
“When I first travelled to Australia I didn’t notice how beautiful the coast is and how nice the people are,” he said.
“I’m enjoying everything I see and the people I meet.”
“I’m happy to run across Australia on my own two legs, but next time I visit I will be driving.”
For more information or to make a donation email to kaytaka@hotmail.com
Mice fed an experimental anti-inflammatory drug three days before exposure to space-like radiation developed half as many carcinomas as mice that did not get the compound, a finding that has implications for astronauts on long-duration missions, as well as people on Earth receiving radiation treatments for therapeutic reasons, new research shows.
We expect our drinking water to be germ free, but what about drug free? You probably haven’t given it much thought … but new research is showing our water is teeming with all kinds of drugs!
DNews Video
The compound, which is derived from plant moss, belongs to a family of drugs called synthetic triterpenoids, which in addition to easing inflammation appear have powerful antioxidant properties.
Synthetic triterpenoids already are in clinical trials and appear to be useful in treating kidney disease, diabetes, age-related macular degeneration, pulmonary diseases, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and various cancers.
The idea to give irradiated mice food laced with a dose of the synthetic triterpenoid CDDO-Me stemmed from a previous series of experiments.
Researchers discovered that mice irradiated over several days developed more cancerous tumors than mice receiving a single hit of radiation, even though the total dosages were identical, Jerry Shaw, with the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas said at the American Society for Gravitational and Space Research conference in Orlando last week.
The mice had been genetically modified to be susceptible to either lung cancer or colon cancer — the first and second leading causes of cancer deaths in the United States.
Cells in the lungs tend to be replaced only when damaged, while colon cells turn over about every seven days, giving researchers two different processes to study.
Splitting up the radiation dose had similar effects on both groups. So did varying the type of radiation.
“This suggested that there was something about the fractioned dose of radiation that was leading to more invasive cancers,” Shaw said.
Since 2011, the Mita clinic in the city of Kodaira, near Tokyo, conducted blood tests and thyroid scans on 1,500 patients, including children.These tests are to be brought to completion and Dr. Shigeru Mita, director of the clinic, the health of the inhabitants of the capital deteriorated sharply after the catastrophe of Fukushima.
In an interview with the website Save children from radiation , Dr. Shigeru Mita said that “the rate of neutrophils (the most abundant type of white blood cells, an essential part of the immune system) in healthy children aged 6to 12 years is 4000, but the patients tested, it is 2500, well below the minimum value allowed so-called “threshold” level which is 3000. I think it shows a serious problem. “
This is of course due to the catastrophe of Fukushima.
“During the summer of 2011, there have been many cases of children with the bloodshot eyes, and found in most cases large circles. (…) We see now more cases of sinusitis accompanied by asthma. (…) And when these children spend some time in western Japan, their health improves. If it were possible, it would have to move away from the east of Japan. “
“Radioactive substances from Fukushima Daiichi reached Tokyo, and huge amounts of contaminated waste is burned and there is no denying the fact that we inhale radioactive substances in the air. Again, after the nuclear accident, a huge amount of radioactive material was released into the environment. Therefore, if we see an increase in symptoms that are different from those we observed previously, physicians should first take into account the effects of radioactivity. “
“I really hope that not only the children leave Tokyo, but also adults,” “Older people need more time to heal asthma, but medication is not working. There is also more patients with diseases that were once rare “
…Barrett applauded TEPCO for adopting a significantly improved “safety culture” the he said is doing a better job of “expecting the unexpected.” He also praised TEPCO for reaching out to experts from the U.S., United Kingdom and elsewhere for assistance.,,,,
Former U.S. Energy official who oversaw Three Mile Island cleanup hails Japan milestone
FUKUSHIMA, Japan, Nov.13, 2013-The U.S. expert who led the cleanup at Three Mile Island for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission gave his endorsement today to the initiation of fuel removal from Unit 4 of the crippled Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station after touring the facility and meeting with its staff, a major milestone towards decontamination of the site.
Lake H. Barrett, a former U.S. Department of Energy official who is acting as an advisor to the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), the plant’s operator, told a press conference that he found preparations for the fuel removal to be thorough and has “confidence” the effort will succeed safely.
Although his trip to Fukushima had been planned some time in advance, Barrett’s favorable inspection results came just a day after Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority gave TEPCO its go-ahead for the removal and transfer of the fuel to safer longer-term storage, building momentum for the effort, which is expected to begin later this month.
“While removal of the fuel is usually a routine procedure in operating a power plant, the damage to the reactor building has made the job more complex,” Barrett said. “TEPCO and its partners have made extensive preparations and are employing specialized technology designed to meet the particular needs of extracting the fuel from the damaged building and safely moving it to more secure storage. I am genuinely impressed by the thoroughness of the effort and TEPCO’s contingency planning.”
TEPCO President Naomi Hirose thanked Barrett for the assistance he has been providing, and for his vote of confidence: “I want to thank Lake Barrett for the assistance and candid advice he has been providing, and for giving us the benefit of his many years of experience not only from Three Mile Island but from a long career in nuclear energy.”
Hirose also praised TEPCO’s workers for reaching this milestone: “We could not have reached this point without the hard work and dedication of many people, both at the Fukushima site and throughout our organization and our partners. I am confident they will perform this task safely and successfully.”
Safer Facility, Safer World
The facility had been badly damaged after the March 2011 tsunami. The fuel needs to be moved because it is sitting in a storage pool that is above ground in a heavily damaged building that TEPCO had to stabilize before beginning the removal. Commenting on the significance of this moment to the overall effort to decontaminate and decommission the site, Barrett said, “Beginning this work shifts the focus from site stabilization to real progress. When the work is done, and the fuel is brought to an undamaged storage facility, the site will be safer for workers, for the community, for Japan, and for the world.”
Barrett applauded TEPCO for adopting a significantly improved “safety culture” the he said is doing a better job of “expecting the unexpected.” He also praised TEPCO for reaching out to experts from the U.S., United Kingdom and elsewhere for assistance.
TEPCO, Inc. is a provider of electricity to the Kanto region, which includes Tokyo and Yokohama. The company is headquartered in Tokyo. For more information, please go to http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/index-e.html.
7.1
This document in conjunction with the support file demonstrates that DSRL is a viable company, capable of holding the nuclear site licence, the RSA 93 discharge authorisations and other environmental consents and licences for the Dounreay site;
and ensuring compliance with all conditions attached to these documents.
7.2
In particular, it demonstrates that:
BDP has a well defined decommissioning programme agreed with and funded by the NDA;
DSRL has strong and robust governance arrangements, with a safety, security and environmental remit built into its structures;
The components of DSRL’s safety management system are robust, established, clear and unambiguous and provide a suitable and sufficient framework for addressing the main SSHEQ issues adequately;
Relevant safety and environmental standards are, and will continue to be, met and that risks are reduced to a level which is low as is reasonably practicable;
and
DSRL has, and will continue to have, access to suitably qualified and experienced
staff to deliver the decommissioning programme in a safe and effective manner.
7.3
This SMP, along with its supporting files, provide a clear statement of DSRL, its structure and how it operates. The SMP addresses all components as suggested within the ‘Licensing Nuclear Installations ’.and T/AST/072 Issue 1 ‘Function and Content, Safety Management Prospectus’. [from PDF link below]
Attached is a redacted version of the “Safety Management Prospectus”, as
requested. The only information withheld from this document is “personal
information” (s.40 “personal information” Freedom of Information Act 2000
and reg. 13 of Environmental Information Regulations are applicable.)
If you are unhappy with the way your request for information has been
handled, you can request the NDA carry out an internal review (contact
[1][email address]).
If you remain dissatisfied with the handling of your request or complaint
you have a right to appeal to the Information Commissioner at:
Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow,
Cheshire, SK9 5AF
Thirteenth Prefectural Oversight Committee convened on November 12, 2013, releasing the results of the latest thyroid examination as part of the prefectural health management survey.
Total number of children examined as of September 30, 2013: 289,960
Total number of children whose initial examination results are confirmed: 225,537
(up to the August 23rd, 2013 examination)
Assessment A1 121,525 (no nodules or cysts found)
Assessment A2 102,453 (nodules 5.0 mm or smaller or cysts 20.0 mm or smaller)
Assessment B 1,558 (nodules 5.1 mm or larger or cysts 20.1 mm or larger)
Assessment C 1 (requiring immediate secondary examination)
Secondary examination includes more detailed thyroid ultrasound, blood and urine tests, and fine-needle aspiration biopsy if warranted.
1,559 are eligible for secondary examination
1,148 have actually undergone secondary examination
897 finished the secondary examination
In summary, as of September 30, 2013, 26 thyroid cancer cases are confirmed and 32 have suspicious biopsy results. (As of July 31, 2013, there were 18 confirmed and 25 suspected cases).
During the committee meeting, Shinichi Suzuki, the head of the thyroid examination, mentioned that one of the 26 confirmed cancer cases was not papillary thyroid cancer: This case is undergoing cytological reevaluation to determine the subtype of thyroid cancer.
During the press conference following the committee meeting, no information was given, as to the details of individual cancer cases, such as the presence of lymph node metastasis or the type of surgery done.
Shinichi Suzuki maintains that this thyroid examination was originally initiated to assess the baseline thyroid condition of Fukushima children, as there is no such epidemiological data available in Japan, with an understanding that it was not possible to obtain pre-exposure data. It is being conducted on an assumption that the effect of radiation exposure would not be obvious for at least four years after exposure, as was seen after the Chernobyl accident.
If these cancer cases were indeed screening effects, similar malignancy would have to be expected in other parts of Japan. As for the thyroid survey conducted by the Ministry of Environment in Aomori, Yamanashi and Nagasaki Prefectures, widely recognized as a comparison study, no cancer data is available from the cases of thyroid ultrasound abnormalities detected. Also it is not age- and gender-matched, and there is a question about the possibly uneven quality of ultrasound examination itself between the two studies. The MOE spokesperson indicated that abnormal cases are undergoing further examination, and more data might become available for comparison.
Jacobs Engineering employs approximately 60,000 employees globally, and its acquisition of KlingStubbins added approximately 500 employees from the architectural firm’s United States and Asia offices.[5] Jacobs has more than 200 offices in more than 25 countries, with operations in North America, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Continental Europe, India, Australia, Africa, and Asia. It owns one-third of the Atomic Weapons Establishment, Aldermaston, UK.
Primary markets include: Aerospace and Defense, Automotive and Industrial, Buildings, Chemicals and Polymers, Consumer and Forest Products, Energy, Environmental Programs, Infrastructure, Mining and Minerals, Oil and Gas, Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology, Refining, and Technology.
Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. (JEC) won a technical consultancy agreement from EDF Energy Nuclear Generation to support its power generation projects in the U.K.
Officials did not disclose the contract value, however noted that the agreement is in effect through the end of December 2015.
Under the terms of the contract, Jacobs is providing technical consultancy, engineering and design services spanning civil, structural, mechanical, electrical control and instrumentation, process, safety and environmental disciplines for a range of projects across EDF Energy’s nuclear power station portfolio in the U.K.
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine intends to approve a concept for a state program on the construction of parking facilities for cargo vehicles for 2014-2017 during a meeting on Nov. 13, according to the government’s agenda……
The latest-generation French nuclear reactor known as the EPR will be tested for the first time in China in 2014, according to Trade Minister Nicole Bricq.
“The Chinese have said this, they have promised me,” Bricq said in an interview in Paris. “The Chinese have told us that it’s their ambition.”
Areva SA (AREVA) and Electricite de France SA are developing EPRs in China at Taishan, Finland, France and under the latest plan in the U.K. following a deal last month to build a $26 billion plant at Hinkley Point in England. The projects at Flamanville in Normandy and Finland for the as-yet unproven EPR reactor have been plagued by delays and billions in budget overruns.
Bricq made her comments on the Chinese project yesterday following a press conference to publicize a nuclear trade fair next October in Paris as well as the importance of the atomic industry for French exports and jobs.
EDF Chief Executive Officer Henri Proglio declined to give a date for when the EPR at Taishan will be completed, saying that it’s China’s role to name the time.
“Taishan is progressing well,” he said.
The first EPR project in Finland, led by Areva, the French company that designed the technology, is seven years behind schedule and won’t be completed until 2016. The second, an EDF project at Flamanville in northwest France, will cost more than twice as much as expected.
EDF has said the lessons learned in these countries as well as China mean Hinkley Point will go more smoothly.
Delayed Start
The Taishan plant, built in partnership with China General Nuclear Power Corp., will start commercial operation in 2015, EDF said last month. That’s about a year later than originally planned. China General and China National Nuclear Corp. will hold minority stakes in the U.K. project.
At Flamanville in Normandy, EDF has pushed back the commercial start of the generator numerous times and revised cost estimates three years in a row. In December, the state-controlled utility raised the estimate to 8.5 billion euros ($11.4 billion).
Key milestones for developing the EPR were reached two years faster in China than in Finland, according to Areva.
WASHINGTON — Over the resistance of state officials, the Department of Energy is moving forward with plans to ship highly radioactive uranium waste to the Nevada National Security Site for burial in a government landfill, federal leaders said Tuesday.
DOE officials insisted the strategy will be safe despite questions about the suitability of disposing potent and long-lived nuclear material in trenches that would be dug deeper than 40 feet into the desert.
Kevin Knobloch, chief of staff to Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz, said Nevada cannot veto the disposal plan at the government’s self-regulated site about 65 miles north of Las Vegas.
In the face of opposition from Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval, Knoblach said DOE has pledged to “work very closely with state and local authorities to make sure we are listening to concerns, answering questions, sharing information.”
Knobloch and other DOE officials spoke to reporters as DOE prepares for public meetings in Las Vegas on Wednesday and in Pahrump on Thursday on the plan, which was delayed earlier this year after it was publicized and began to draw further scrutiny.
Starting early next year, 403 canisters containing a ceramic mixture of uranium-233, uranium-235 and uranium-232 will be transported to Nevada from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory as part of an environmental cleanup of the Tennessee site.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Birol pointed out that imported natural gas prices in Japan are five times higher than in the USA. He said that it is important for the country “to think carefully whether or not to go back to the use of nuclear while it has to keep electricity prices down.”
The export markets of Europe and Japan will decline as a result of higher electricity prices, according to the International Energy Agency’s 2013 edition of its World Energy Outlook (WEO).
Currently, electricity prices for industrial consumers in Europe and Japan are more than double those in the USA. This large gap in prices is projected to be maintained through to 2035 in the latest WEO annual report, affecting company strategies and investment decisions in energy-intensive industries. While America sees its share of global exports of energy-intensive goods slightly increase to 2035, Europe and Japan would see their shares of global exports decline by 10% and 3% respectively from today’s levels – representing a combined loss of around one-third of their current share.
Speaking at the launch of the report in London today, IEA chief economist and WEO Editor Fatih Birol said, “Lower energy prices in the USA mean that it is well-placed to reap an economic advantage, while higher costs for energy-intensive industries in Europe and Japan are set to be a heavy burden.”
“It didn’t spread via the internet. It spread outside of its target due to a bug and so it started traveling via USB. Given the community targeted, I would not be surprised if other countries had nuclear plants with infected PCs,” he said.
The virus appears to have spread to other countries.
One of the world’s top computer security experts – Eugene Kaspersky – said this week that the virus has attacked a Russian nuclear reactor. As The Register notes:
The infamous Stuxnet malware thought to have been developed by the US and Israel to disrupt Iran’s nuclear facilities, also managed to cause chaos at a Russian nuclear plant, according to Eugene Kaspersky.
The revelation came during a Q&A session after a speech at Australia’s National Press Club last week, in which he argued that those spooks responsible for “offensive technologies” don’t realise the unintended consequences of releasing malware into the wild.
“Everything you do is a boomerang,” he added. “It will get back to you.”
***
“Unfortunately, it’s very possible that other nations which are not in a conflict will be victims of cyber attacks on critical infrastructure,” said Kaspersky.
“It’s cyber space. [There are] no borders, [and many facilities share the] same systems.”
Not finished there, Kaspersky also claimed to have heard from “Russian space guys” in the know that even machines on the International Space Station had been infected “from time to time” after scientists arrived aboard with infected USBs.
Watch for yourself:
As British security website V3 – in an article entitled “Stuxnet: UK and US nuclear plants at risk as malware spreads outside Russia” – reports:
Experts from FireEye [background] and F-Secure [background] told V3 the nature of Stuxnet means it is likely many power plants have fallen victim to the malware ….
F-Secure security analyst Sean Sullivan told V3 Stuxnet’s unpredictable nature means it has likely spread to other facilities outside of the plant mentioned by Kaspersky.
TORONTO Already increasing electricity bills will soar even higher if Ontario Power Generation gets approval for a 30 per cent increase in the rate it is paid for electricity generated by nuclear power, the New Democrats warned Tuesday.
“You’re seeing rates go up faster than they should,” said NDP energy critic Peter Tabuns. “As long as the Liberals see a blank cheque as a parachute to get out of any tough spots, our bills are going to go up.”
OPG said the rate increase, if approved by the Ontario Energy Board, would add about $5.36 each month to the bill for typical residential customers.
The reasons for the requested hike “include ensuring obligations for used nuclear fuel management and decommissioning costs are met,” the government-owned utility said in a statement.
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