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Uranium company abandons acid leach plan mining in Australian National Park

Bad news for uranium sector, good news for Kakadu National Park, Scott Ludlam,   August 4th, 2011. The Australian Greens today welcomed the news Energy Resources Australia have abandoned plans to introduce acid heap leaching at the Ranger Uranium Mine within Kakadu National Park.

 Senator Scott Ludlam said the decision by ERA – majority owned by Rio Tinto – to ditch the plan at their board meeting yesterday was welcome news, and casts a long shadow over the viability of the controversial mine.

 “The plan to build a heap leach plant on the Ranger lease was opposed by\Traditional Owners, shareholders, business analysts, environmental advocates and mining experts. This is a win for good sense. “Ranger Uranium Mine has been an ongoing debacle with water seepage ana history of accidents. The Mirarr people – Traditional Owners of the site – and the broader Australian community want Kakadu protected. Ultimately the best way to do that will be the orderly shut-down of the uranium industry,” said Senator Ludlam.

 Last year the Office of the Supervising Scientist told a Senate estimates hearing that contaminated water seeping from the Ranger uranium mine in Kakadu National Park had a uranium concentration about 5,400 times the normal level. The environmental regulator told the hearing that about 100,000 litres of water was seeping from the tailings dam every day.

August 4, 2011 Posted by | AUSTRALIA, business and costs, Uranium | Leave a comment

Why Britain’s new nuclear plant might never get built

the most extraordinary thing in this whole saga is that the companies are going ahead without knowing how much this 1,600MW power station will cost.

Hinkley C – Somerset’s nuclear money pit?,  byl  1 August 2011  guardian.co.uk Uncosted, unapproved, and unwanted: why Britain’s new nuclear plant may never get built  French state-owned power company EDF has been given permission to start the pre-construction of “Hinkley C”, the third nuclear power station on the Somerset coast of the Bristol channel. Continue reading →

August 2, 2011 Posted by | business and costs, UK | Leave a comment

Florida’s new nuclear plants – costs escalating

Rising cost of Florida’s new nuclear power getting scrutiny Customer groups ask state regulators to require FPL and Progress Energy to answer how much new nuclear plants will cost and when they’ll be built, Miami Herald, Mary Ellen Klas, 1 August 11,  TALLAHASSEE –– For the past two years, customers of Florida’s largest electric companies have been paying to build new nuclear power plants that have an escalating price tag and no guarantee of completion.Attorneys for consumers and the state’s largest electricity users told the Public Service Commission on Monday to demand answers from the utilities…..

The Office of Public Counsel also wants the PSC to impose stronger standards on how FPL calculates its costs. It said that the cost of expanding its nuclear capacity at its Turkey Point plant has escalated from $1.4 billion to $1.8 billion in the last year, but the company makes the project appear more cost effective by not including what it has already spent on the project……http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/08/01/2340842/rising-cost-of-floridas-new-nuclear.html

August 2, 2011 Posted by | business and costs, USA | Leave a comment

The huge extent of the nuclear radiation costs at Fukushima Prefecture

The Truth About Nuclear Power: Japanese Nuclear Engineer Calls for Abolition Koide Hiroaki Introduction and translation by Sakai Yasuyuki and Norimatsu Satoko,1 August 11,“…….The government has also been forcing plant workers and local residents to sacrifice without making clear who is responsible. They have raised the radiation dose limit for the workers at Fukushima Daiichi. They have also raised radiation dose limits for local residents in deciding on compulsory evacuation.

Are they really allowed to do such things? I find myself at a loss when I think about the true scale of the damage caused by the Fukushima Daiichi accidents.If we apply the current Japanese law strictly, we would have to abandon an area that would be as large as the whole prefecture of Fukushima.

The only way to avoid this is to raise the radiation dose limit for residents, and that would mean forcing increased radiation exposure on residents.I think that primary industry will suffer tremendously. Agriculture and fishery among others will have difficulty selling their produce and their catch. Residents will be forced out of their homeland and their lives will be shattered.

Some say we should make TEPCO pay proper compensation. But no matter what they pay, or even if they pay to the extent that they go bankrupt, it will not be sufficient. Even if TEPCO goes bankrupt multiple times, it will not be enough. The damage from the accident will be so enormous that even the whole country of Japan going bankrupt might not pay for it. This of course is if they are really going to pay for the damage.
The Truth About Nuclear Power: Japanese Nuclear Engineer Calls for Abolition :: JapanFocus

August 1, 2011 Posted by | business and costs, Japan | Leave a comment

Nuclear free future is looking like a better commercial option for Japan

a welcome step toward moving away from reliance on centralised nuclear power production to a model of dispersed electricity producers linked by a high-tech “Smart Grid”…..

 “The vested interests dominate a lot of the political process, but we are seeing a challenge from the local government level,” said Rikkyo University professor Andrew DeWit, adding that Son was also attracting interest from a range of companies and non-profits.

Sticking with nuclear could be costlier Japan option, By Linda Sieg, TOKYO  Jul 26, 2011, TOKYO (Reuters) – Can Japan afford to go nuclear-power-free? The country’s atomic power industry and many big business clients say “No”, arguing the step would boost electricity bills and pollution and hasten the hollowing out of Japanese manufacturing.

But the Fukushima nuclear disaster is galvanising a coalition of safety-conscious voters and future-minded companies who increasingly believe that Japan cannot afford to stick with the status quo if it wants to be globally competitive. Continue reading →

August 1, 2011 Posted by | business and costs, Japan | Leave a comment

Nuclear company moves to ensure that consumers cop their building cost overruns

Consumer, not Georgia Power, would be on hook for potential Vogtle overruns, By Kristi E. Swartz , The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 28 July 11, At an energy committee meeting in their downtown Atlanta chambers, Public Service Commission members said they would support only a July 18 deal reached between Georgia Power and the PSC’s advocacy staff, one that removed a recommendation calling for Georgia Power’s profits to be reduced should the costs to build two nuclear reactors at Plant Vogtle exceed budget by $300 million. Additional costs, with PSC approval, would show up in customers’ monthly utility bills.

A consumer watchdog group on Thursday continued to press for an agreement that would make Georgia Power — and not consumers — pay for any major cost overruns at its Plant Vogtle nuclear expansion project, but Georgia utility regulators remained resistant. ….

Commissioner Tim Echols was more pointed, saying approval for such a plan would “chill the construction of nuclear plants in the United States.”

Attorney Clare McGuire for Georgia Watch argued that consumers would be left with no protection against bill increases should the project go beyond its budget.  “Georgia Power doesn’t want to be held to costs beyond its control,” McGuire said. “The ratepayers have no choice.”….http://www.ajc.com/business/consumer-not-georgia-power-1055562.html

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July 29, 2011 Posted by | business and costs, USA | Leave a comment

Nuclear industry’s massive costs have been underestimated

Kenichi Oshima, a professor of environmental economics and policy at Ritsumeikan University, has done some calculations and has reached a completely different conclusion….

“If we were to funnel funds earmarked for reprocessing and the nuclear budget, it would be very feasible to get power generation with renewable sources of energy off the ground.”

Contrary to power company figures, cost of nuclear power generation highest: research  Mainichi Daily News, 23 July 11  Utility companies across the country continue to tout the low cost of nuclear energy on their websites. Continue reading →

July 23, 2011 Posted by | business and costs, Japan | Leave a comment

Move to keep old Japanese nuclear reactors beyond use by date

UPDATE 3-Japan utilities push to extend life of nuclear plants, Jul 22, 2011

 * Kansai Electric files to keep 40-yr-old Mihama reactor running

* Chubu says to beef up tsunami defences at Hamaoka by Dec 2012

* Debate intensifies as safety fears square off vs economy worries

By Kaori Kaneko and Osamu Tsukimori, TOKYO, July 22 (Reuters) – Two Japanese utilities moved on Friday to extend the life of reactors at a pair of central coastal nuclear plants, fuelling already fierce debate over energy policy in the wake of the Fukushima radiation crisis.

Continue reading →

July 23, 2011 Posted by | business and costs, Japan | Leave a comment

A nuclear cost chain reaction – explosively expensive

So, the construction of nuclear is stalling and the costs are rising. Contrast that with renewable energy, where installations are surging, and most of the technologies are coming down in price as they mature and reach scale....

Nuclear power’s real chain reaction: spiralling costs, The Guardian (UK) Damian Carrington, 22 July 11, Time is money, they say, and the new nuclear power plant being built byEDF at Flamanville in France is now at least four years behind time and €2.7bn over budget. EDF blamed the delay on two fatal construction accidents and dealing with safety analyses prompted by the Fukushima disaster. Continue reading →

July 22, 2011 Posted by | business and costs, France | 1 Comment

More delays, more cost blowouts for France’s “new generation” nuclear plant

The reactor has already faced repeated delays and run billions of euros over budget…….

France delays new generation nuclear plant, News Tribune, July 21, 2011 – Tacoma, WA, PARIS — France’s electricity giant announced Wednesday it is delaying its new generation nuclear reactor for two years after a pair of deadly accidents and safety reviews prompted by the disaster at Japan’s Fukushima Dai-ichi plant. Continue reading →

July 21, 2011 Posted by | business and costs, France | Leave a comment

Pakistan wants to join the nuclear power cartel

Pakistan wants to join Nuclear Suppliers Group, The Express Tribune, July 15th, 2011., By Zia Khan, ISLAMABAD:  Pakistan has offered to join four nuclear export control regimes, including the Nuclear Suppliers Group, if the international community recognises it as a nuclear weapons state, but remains unwilling to sign the nuclear non-proliferation treaty.

At a meeting in Islamabad on Thursday, the country’s top political and military leadership said Pakistan wished to be part of global non-proliferation efforts but only if it was accepted as a nuclear weapons state…..

Foreign Office spokeswoman Tehmina Janjua later told The Express Tribune that Pakistan was willing to join four ‘technology cartels’ that control the international trade of nuclear and missile technologies: the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), the Australia and the Wassenaar groups.

The MTCR and the NSG deal with the international trade of missile and nuclear technologies while the Australia and the Wassenaar groups manage trade in conventional small weapons and various materials used in the manufacturing of arms respectively.

Janjua said Pakistan’s ‘principled’ position on Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) was the same. About NPT, she added that Islamabad considered it as a ‘discriminatory’ arrangement and will not sign the CTBT unless the United States and India do the same….http://tribune.com.pk/story/210107/pakistan-wants-to-join-nuclear-suppliers-group/

July 15, 2011 Posted by | business and costs, Pakistan | 1 Comment

Rossing uranium mine workers on strike for fairer pay

“It is the second largest employer after Namdeb. Rössing already made a loss last year, so this is big stuff.”

Rössing workers defy court order, Namibian 15 July 11, By: DENVER KISTING, YESTERDAY afternoon, Rössing Uranium employees ignored an order by Judge President Petrus Damaseb, who had ruled that their three-day strike was illegal and they must return to work immediately.

This means that by this morning, the accumulated loss for the uranium giant as a result of the strike amounted to approximately N$22,5 million. In court papers filed at the High Court in Windhoek yesterday, the company’s Chief Operating Officer (COO), Mpho Mothoa, said Rössing has lost approximately N$2,5 million per shift. It has three shifts per day. Continue reading →

July 15, 2011 Posted by | employment, Namibia, Uranium | Leave a comment

The end of nuclear, an economic boon for Germany

a shift to a renewable energy powered economy comes with costs. However, this price tag is modest in comparison to the heavy burden that nuclear brings. Over the last 40 years, the German nuclear industry has been pampered with more than 200 billion Euros in subsidies.  In comparison, renewable energy technologies have been incentivized by about 4.8 billion Euros in 2010. By replacing fossil fuel imports and avoiding health costs, renewables already pay off today. 

Auf Wiedersehen! Germany’s goodbye to nuclear power will accelerate the transition towards a low-carbon economy, THE HILL, By Arne Jungjohann: Director for the Environment Program of the Heinrich Böll Foundation-07/08/11 ……….A decade ago, Germany started transitioning towards a low carbon economy. The share of renewable power has tripled. Wind farms, solar modules, biogas, and hydro power provide 18 percent of Germany’s power supply. Today, renewables are a reliable and indispensable pillar of Germany’s power supply that keep trains running and factories humming. The sector is fast growing and provides 370,000 good-paying jobs – much more than the 22,000 jobs in Germany’s lignite coal industry. Many of these jobs are within traditional industries, such as steel workers, farmers and the ceramic and glass industries. Continue reading →

July 8, 2011 Posted by | business and costs, Germany | Leave a comment

Nuclear Suppliers Group restricting sales of atomic technology

Export Group Could Restrict Key Atomic Tech Sales. Global Security Network  June 20, 2011 The 46-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group has acted to prohibit its members from furnishing nuclear fuel enrichment and reprocessing systems to countries outside the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, the Deccan Chronicle reported on Monday (see GSN, May 27).

The initiative prompted apprehension from India, which in 2008 received a waiver allowing it to import sensitive material and technology even as a nuclear-armed state that has not joined the treaty……http://www.globalsecuritynewswire.org/gsn/nw_20110620_7198.php

June 21, 2011 Posted by | 2 WORLD, business and costs | Leave a comment

Another nuclear crisis would wipe out investment in uranium

While currently abandonment of nuclear power remains an option limited to affluent countries, one more cataclysm may nail the coffin lid of the nuclear power industry shut for good…., as another nuclear debacle in the U.S. following in the wake 1979’s Three Mile Island accident will undoubtedly prove too much, even for Madison Ave.’s PR spin doctors. No NPPS have been built in the U.S. since Three Mile Island and should bad things happen at Ft. Calhoun, where the Missouri’s water’s are still rising, the global market for uranium fuel for NPPs worldwide is going to crater, beginning with the U.S.

Kazakhstan’s Uranium Industry Could Lose Its Luster, By. John Daily,  OilPrice.com, 18 June 11-– What a difference a year and a tsunami make!

Western investors have been salivating over the post-Soviet space’s energy riches since the 1991 collapse of communism. While focusing on the Caspian’s hydrocarbon reserves other mineralogical riches awaited development as well, none more so than Kazakhstan’s vast uranium deposits. Continue reading →

June 19, 2011 Posted by | business and costs, Kazakhstan, Uranium | Leave a comment

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