business and costs « nuclear-news

“Community owned nuclear power stations” suggested to solve problem of public distrust

Perhaps the government simply accepts no-one will ever trust it on nuclear power.

How not to solve nuclear power’s trust problem http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/damian-carrington-blog/2012/jul/09/nuclear-power-energy-secrecy?newsfeed=true Continued secrecy, shown in stupidly brief minutes of official meetings, and entrenched attitudes lead to daft ideas like community-owned reactors The public does not trust the government to be objective on nuclear power, a committee of MPs conclude today .

This is hardly surprising, as the MPs note: “The government’s position as an advocate for nuclear power makes it difficult for the public to trust it as an impartial source of information . Continue reading →

July 10, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | marketing, UK | 3 Comments

Strike and problem of decaying concrete at Canada’s nuclear power plants

those employees should also be demanding safety in their workplace as well. At least one Candu plant – Gentilly-2 in Quebec – is decaying .

The plant is one of many that regulators say is operating well past its expected life of 25 to 30 years

Major Problems Facing Canada’s Nuclear Sector http://www.care2.com/causes/major-problems-facing-canadas-nuclear-sector.html#ixzz20GmGP3Pi by Amy Boughner July 9, 2012 Canada’s nuclear industry is once again facing major issues. More than 800 Candu Energy employees are on strike as of the morning of July 9, looking for higher wages. The scientists, engineers and technologists work at Candu plants in Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick. Continue reading →

July 10, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | Canada, employment, safety | Leave a comment

Production stops at AREVA’s Niger uranium mine, as workers strike

Niger Areva uranium workers begin 72-hour strike, NIAMEY, Jul 9, (Reuters) – About 1,200 workers at Niger’s Akouta uranium mine owned by COMINAK, a subsidiary of France’s Areva, have began a 72-hour strike to demand higher wages, a union official said on Monday. Inoua Neino, secretary general of the SYNTRAMIN union, said production had stopped at the over 1,600 tonnes a year mine in the north of the west African nation after the workers downed tools.

“We embarked on a strike after our demand for a 3 percent raise in salaries, even though insignificant, was not met with satisfaction by management,” Neino told journalists.

“Workers did not go down into the mine today and if they are not down there, it means that there was no extraction, and if there was no extraction, there is no production,” he said.

The company was not immediately available for comment….. http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/07/09/niger-areva-strike-idUSL6E8I9CEF20120709

July 10, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | employment, Niger, Uranium | Leave a comment

BHP Billiton likely to shelve grandiose Olympic Dam copper/uranium mine plan?

BHP (NYSE:BHP) Reports It Will Make Tighter Worldwide Copper Supply- USA Election News, 9 July 12 By: Jessica Honsinger BHP Billiton Limited (NYSE:BHP) reported on Friday that it will make tighter worldwide copper supply from late 2013 onward if it delays work on its single-biggest project, the $30 billion growth of the Olympic Dam mine in Australia.
A 25% decrease in benchmark international copper prices since early on 2011 has eroded possible returns from the project, and the economic delay in top base metal consumer China has dampened the demand viewpoint. BHP’s system to quadruple output from Olympic Dam the fourth-biggest known copper deposit and biggest uranium source in the world is one a growing number experts consider probable to be shelved until markets stabilize….. http://uselectionnews.org/bhp-nysebhp-reports-it-will-make-tighter-worldwide-copper-supply-bhp-pcx-vale-anr-aci/

July 10, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | AUSTRALIA, business and costs | Leave a comment

World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2012

“The fact that plant life extension seems the most likely survival strategy of the nuclear industry raises serious safety issues. Most critically will be to what extent and for how long nuclear safety authorities will be in a position to withstand growing pressure from nuclear utilities to keep operating increasingly outdated technology”

We are glad to announce that the report is now available for free download at www.WorldNuclearReport.org. Mycle Schneider Consulting ,Independent Analysis on Energy and Nuclear Policy 9 July 12, Twenty years after its first edition, the World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2012 portrays an industry suffering from the cumulative impacts of the world economic crisis, the Fukushima disaster, ferocious competitors and its own planning and management difficulties.

Key results of the assessment include:

• Only seven new reactors started up, while 19 were shut down in 2011. On 5 July 2012, one reactor was reconnected to the grid at Ohi in Japan and another unit is expected to generate power on the site within two weeks. However, it remains highly uncertain, how many others will receive permission to restart operations in Japan.

• Four countries announced that they will phase out nuclear power within a given timeframe.

• At least five countries have decided not to engage or re-engage in nuclear programs.

• In Bulgaria and Japan two reactors under construction were abandoned.

• In four countries new build projects were officially cancelled. Of the 59 units under construction in the world, at least 18 are experiencing multi-year delays, while the remaining 41 projects were started within the past five years or have not yet reached projected start-up dates, making it difficult to assess whether they are running on schedule.

• Construction costs are rapidly rising. The European EPR cost estimate has increased by a factor of four (adjusted for inflation) over the past ten years.

• Two thirds of the assessed nuclear companies and utilities were downgraded by credit rating agency Standard and Poor’s over the past five years.

• The assessment of a dozen nuclear companies reveals that all but one performed worse than the UK FTSE100 index. The shares of the world’s largest nuclear operator, French state utility EDF, lost 82 percent of their value, that of the world’s largest nuclear builder, French state company AREVA, fell by 88 percent.

In contrast, renewable energy development has continued with rapid growth figures. Continue reading →

July 9, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, business and costs, Reference | Leave a comment

AREVA scrambles to sell nuclear technology to China

Areva Looks To China As France Rethinks Nuclear Power By Francois de Beaupuy and Caroline Connan – Jul 7, 2012 Areva SA (AREVA) Chief Executive Officer Luc Oursel is seeking fresh talks to sell nuclear reactors to China , halted in the wake of last year’s nuclear accident in Japan and amid questions about the new French government’s energy stance. …. Continue reading →

July 9, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, France | Leave a comment

AREVA and others scramble to sell nuclear technology to Britain

Areva confirms joint bid with China’s CGNPC for UK’s Horizon AIX-EN-PROVENCE, France, July 7 | Sat Jul 7, 2012 (Reuters) – French nuclear group Areva will make a joint bid with China Guangdong Nuclear Power Corporation Holding (CGNPC) for the UK’s 6-gigawatt Horizon project, its chief executive Luc Oursel said on Saturday.

“We will participate in the British government’s plan to make this project a reality, and we will probably do it with Chinese power companies and other players,” Oursel said on the sidelines of a conference in Aix-en-Provence, southern France. “Probably by the end of the year, the sellers will make public their choice for the team that will take over the project,” Oursel told
reporters.

Reuters reported on June 18 that Westinghouse teamed up with SNPTC to make a bid, while Areva picked China Guangdong to put forward a bid…. http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/07/07/areva-horizon-idUSL6E8I72CS20120707

July 9, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, France, UK | Leave a comment

the “Arab Spring” has pulled the plug on nuclear power for the Middle East

Arab Spring proves winter to nuclear ambitions Times Live, Sapa-dpa | 08 July, 2012 Along with lifetime presidencies, emergency laws, and personalised security forces, the Arab Spring uprisings of the past year have claimed another illustrious victim: nuclear energy.

“All the plans, all the agreements, all the studies; everything has stopped,” said Abdelmajid Mahjoub, director of the Arab Atomic Energy Agency (AAEA), a regional atomic energy body affiliated with the Arab League. Continue reading →

July 9, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, MIDDLE EAST, politics international, Reference | Leave a comment

AREVA having trouble getting funding for uranium enrichment plant

Uranium enrichment plant near Idaho Falls could be delayed KTVB.com.. July 7, 2012 BOISE, Idaho — Areva still hasn’t announced a partner to help build its proposed gas centrifuge uranium enrichment plant near Idaho Falls.

If it can’t find an investor, construction on the $3 billion project will likely be delayed until 2014…. Spokesman Mike French said Areva is still seeking assistance. If no suitable investor is found or steps forward, he says it could push construction back until early 2014.
http://www.ktvb.com/news/Idaho-uranium-enrichment-project-could-be-delayed-161675625.html

July 9, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, Uranium, USA | Leave a comment

Gloomy outlook for future of nuclear power industry

“The situation is much worse for the industry than after Chernobyl,” ….. “New projects have a very dull future, but it will put enormous pressure on extending lifetimes and that raises obvious safety issues.”

“The financial situation has dramatically worsened since Fukushima and there is almost no exception to the rule.”

World Atomic Output Falls by Record in Fukushima’s Aftermath
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-07-06/world-atomic-power-output-falls-by-record-in-fukushima-aftermath Bloomberg News, By Kari Lundgren July 06, 2012 World nuclear power production dropped by a record 4.3 percent last year as the global financial crisis and the Fukushima disaster in Japan prompted plant
shutdowns and slowed construction of new sites. Continue reading →

July 7, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, business and costs | Leave a comment

Fukushima disaster workers forced to do cleanup without safety precautions

there was never any health supervision or monitoring of radiation doses. I am worried about the amount of radioactive substances that may have built up in my body.”

FINAL REPORT (4) : TEPCO failed to warn nuke plant workers after 3/11 http://ajw.asahi.com/article/behind_news/social_affairs/AJ201207060070, THE ASAHI SHIMBUN Workers who remained in the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant even after it was hit by the huge earthquake and tsunami to deal with the fast-moving crisis were praised as heroes dubbed the “Fukushima 50.”

But the reality was that most were forced to do the dangerous work without vital information and safety precautions, the report by the Diet’s investigation panel has revealed.

The final report by the Diet’s Fukushima accident investigation panel has revealed that workers at the nuclear plant after the onset of the disaster were forced to tackle the accident without adequate information and or safety precautions.

The report, issued by the National Diet of Japan Fukushima Nuclear Accident Independent Investigation Commission on July 5, also reveals what Tokyo Electric Power Co. employees and subcontractors experienced and felt during operations after the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami hit the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant on March 11, 2011. Continue reading →

July 7, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | employment, Fukushima 2012, Japan, Reference | Leave a comment

San Onofre nuclear plant: uneconomic, and a political burden?

Could the looming costs become so large that they would make operation of San Onofre financially unworkable?

“The decision for closing a nuclear plant is much above and beyond economics,” “Closing (San Onofre) really has a very heavy political burden.”

San Onofre Costs: Could Economics Doom The Ailing California Nuclear Plant? HUFFINGTON POST, By MICHAEL R. BLOOD 07/04/12 LOS ANGELES — The
future of the troubled San Onofre nuclear power plant could balance on an inescapable question: Is it worth the money to fix it?

Engineers face a daunting task finding a solution for problems that knocked the seaside plant offline last winter. And even if they come up with a plan that fully addresses safety and operational issues, will it all make sense on a balance sheet?..

… Two decades ago, San Onofre’s Unit 1 reactor was shut down and then dismantled when owners faced the prospect of swallowing a $125 million bill for upgrades and repairs. Oregon’s Trojan nuclear plant closed its doors in 1993, rather than replace steam generators that had leaky tubes. Continue reading →

July 5, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, USA | Leave a comment

Japan’s Fukushima Daini nuclear plant might never restart

Doubts linger over Japan’s nuclear future, FT.com, By Mure Dickie, Tokyo, 4 July 12, When the world’s appalled gaze turned to Japan’s tsunami-crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station in March last year, few paid much attention to its sister atomic plant, , Fukushima Daini, , just 10 km south……

for all the seeming normality of the scene, Daini’s future is shrouded in doubt.

Work to fully restore safety systems damaged by the tsunami is expected to be completed by March. But even the new bosses of operator Tokyo Electric Power shy away from the question of whether Daini’s reactors will ever be turned back on. Continue reading →

July 5, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, Japan, safety | Leave a comment

Belgium to shut down 2 nuclear power plants

Two Nuclear Plants To Shut in Belgium as Part of Energy Overhaul – Report, Fox News, July 04, 2012 Dow Jones Newswires, Belgium is poised to shut down two of its nuclear power plants and prolong the lifespan of a third reactor as part of a major shake-up of the country’s energy sector.
According to Belgian media, two reactors, Doel 1 and Doel 2, will be shut down in April 2016. A third plant, Tihange, will be overhauled as of 2015 and kept running until 2025 in order to secure the country’s electricity supplies. http://www.foxbusiness.com/news/2012/07/04/two-nuclear-plants-to-shut-in-belgium-as-part-energy-overhaul-report/#ixzz1zjY0NSYN

July 5, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, EUROPE | Leave a comment

Uranium market stays slumped

Gap Grows Between Uranium Buyers and Sellers, 9 News 4 July 12, A slow week last week ended what was a slow month for uranium trading. Spot prices barely budged on the 15 transactions reported in June by industry consultant TradeTech, with sellers unwilling to drop their prices and buyers not willing to pay more.

With traders comprising the vast majority of both buyers and sellers in the bulk of the transactions reported over the past several months, TradeTech notes the spot uranium price remains stuck between the lack of committed buyers and what are fairly unmotivated sellers at current levels.

Last week’s news that Japan had officially green-lighted the restart of two reactors did see a bit of renewed optimism in the market, but what seems to be an increasingly stubborn spot uranium market remained sluggish, with the announcement yet to produce any sort of uplift in prices.

July 5, 2012 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, business and costs, Uranium | Leave a comment

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