business and costs « nuclear-news

Escalating costs of taxpayer funded uranium mining cleanup

Hot Rocks: Hidden Cost and Foreign Ownership of “Clean” Nuclear Fuel Emerging,THE HUFFINGTON POST, D.A. Barber, 1 April 2010, Western U.S. supporters of “clean” nuclear power say it means more jobs at uranium mines and mills. But critics say the escalating costs of past uranium facility clean-up, billion-dollar subsidies, and the fact that most of the companies are foreign-owned, has seemingly gone unnoticed. Continue reading →

April 2, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, USA | antinuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, nuclear technology, nuclear weapons, radiation, radioactive, uranium | Leave a comment

Financial battle over the future of the nuclear power industry

As elderly nukes stumble toward oblivion, various funds allegedly set aside for decommissioning may be significantly under-funded, deeply exacerbating the financial battles that now the industry.

The Legacy of Three Mile Island: It Could Happen Again At Any Time HARVEY WASSERMAN FOR BUZZFLASH 27 March 2010,“……1) Four northeastern nukes—in Vermont, New Jersey and the two at Indian Point— are under intense public pressure to shut within the next two years. Numerous other elderly reactors are likely to go down long before any new nukes could come on line. Continue reading →

March 29, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, USA | antinuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear wastes, radioactive, reactor, reactors | Leave a comment

U.S Nuclear Loan Guarantee to go to France’s AREVA?

The first $2 billion will be allocated to Areva for “front-end nuclear fuel facilities.”

Areva and USEC could get loan guarantees , The Energy Collective, by Dan Yuman, 29 March 2010, DOE runs concept up flagpole with House Appropriations Committee he Chillicothe Gazette, a southern Ohio newspaper, reports March 27 that Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu told the House Appropriations Committee this week he wants to give $2 billion loan guarantees to both USEC and Areva for new uranium enrichment plants.

At the same time Steve Isakowitz, DOE’s Chief Financial Officer, also reportedly sent a letter to Sen. Jeff Bingaman, (D-NM), Chairman of the Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee.

In it he said the agency will use $4 billion in loan guarantee authority split two ways. The first $2 billion will be allocated to Areva for “front-end nuclear fuel facilities.” The other $2 billion will be used for “innovative technologies.”

Areva and USEC could get loan guarantees

March 29, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, USA | antinuclear, AREVA, France, nuclear costs | Leave a comment

How George W. Bush left the taxpayer with a crippling nuclear waste debt

These new contracts will only add to that crushing burden.

With hasty stroke of a pen, Bush DOE transferred billions of dollars in radioactive waste liability onto taxpayers

Beyond Nuclear, 27 March 2020, Between November 4, 2008 (the day Barack Obama was elected President) and January 22, 2009 (two days after he took the Oath of Office), the George W. Bush administration’s Department of Energy (DOE) hurriedly signed new irradiated nuclear fuel contracts with utilities proposing 21 new atomic reactors.

This obligates U.S. taxpayers to ultimate financial liability for breach of contract damages if DOE fails to take possession of these estimated 21,000 metric tons of high-level radioactive waste by ten years after the new reactors’ licenses terminate. Continue reading →

March 27, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, USA | Leave a comment

Natural gas in reality much cheaper than nuclear energy

Cheaper natural gas makes it hard to build nukes The Dallas Morning News, Elizabeth Souder, 25 March 20201, Natural gas at $3 per million British thermal units is simply too cheap for a power company to consider building a nuclear power plant, according to Energy Future Holdings chief executive John Young.What do the two have to do with each other? Everything.In Texas, as in many places, natural gas markets set the price of electricity. The higher natural gas goes, the more money power generators get for their product…..the higher natural gas prices rise, the fatter the profit margins for nukes.

March 26, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, USA | antinuclear, nuclear costs | Leave a comment

Revival of U.S. nuclear industry in doubt due to waste problem

Waste issue hurting U.S. nuclear revival-panel Lack of plan for waste seen hurting nuclear development Commission told to move beyond Yucca Mountain site Some lawmakers oppose plan to shut down Yucca By Ayesha Rascoe, WASHINGTON, March 25 (Reuters) – The lack of a permanent home for the nation’s radioactive waste is dampening prospects for a resurgence of the U.S. nuclear industry, federal commissioners said at their first public hearing on the subject. Continue reading →

March 26, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear renaissance, nuclear spin, nuclear wastes, radiation, radioactive, uranium | Leave a comment

Nuclear “spinoff” company rejected – ‘financially shaky’

NY regulators reject Entergy nuclear spinoff Google News, By GEORGE M. WALSH (AP) –26 March 2010, ALBANY, N.Y. — New York utility regulators on Thursday rejected Entergy Corp.’s plan to spin off its six nuclear power stations into a separate company.The state Public Service Commission acted after its staff determined the deal wasn’t in the public interest, primarily because the resulting company — Enexus Energy Corp. — could be financially shaky….

The Associated Press: NY regulators reject Entergy nuclear spinoff

March 26, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear renaissance, nuclear spin | Leave a comment

UK’s nuclear plants viable only with advance levy on customers

Budget 2010: Consumers face levy on energy bills to pay for nuclear plants The Guardian UK 25 March 2010 The government has officially confirmed plans for a new carbon levy on consumer bills which it hopes will make building new nuclear plants viable, as the Guardian revealed in October last year. Continue reading →

March 26, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, UK | antinuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear spin, reactors | Leave a comment

Tons of nuclear waste – $billions of cost to taxpayers

Nuclear Waste Piles Up, and It’s Costing Taxpayers Billions, 24 March 2010by: Mark Clayton | The Christian Science Monitor The Bush administration agreed to store nuclear waste from 21 new reactors. But the federal government still can’t meet its commitment to find permanent storage. Continue reading →

March 26, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear spin, nuclear wastes, radiation, uranium | Leave a comment

U.S. taxpayer funding not only nuclear loans, but also uranium enrichment

U.S. funding new uranium enrichment effort BETHESDA, Md., March 24 (UPI) –– The U.S. Department of Energy reached a cost-sharing agreement with uranium giant USEC Inc. to fund the development of uranium enrichment technology. U.S. enrichment company and the Department of Energy agreed on a joint $90 million cost sharing agreement to fund advanced centrifuge research at USEC’s American Centrifuge enrichment plant in Piketon, Ohio…..The Department of Energy under the agreement takes care of the disposal of depleted uranium.

U.S. funding new uranium enrichment effort – UPI.com

March 25, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, USA | antinuclear, depleted, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, nuclear wastes, radioactive, uranium | Leave a comment

Uranium Waste Solutions share price plummets

First Uranium ops lose value miningmx, Dewald van Rensburg | Wed, 24 Mar 2010 “….. The value of First Uranium’s subsidiary, Mine Waste Solutions (MWS), which is intended to reclaim gold and uranium from 14 mine dumps, has halved since March 2008, to about $211m. The value of the second operating division, the Ezulwini mine, has also halved since January 2009, to $437m.

First Uranium ops lose value

March 25, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | 2 WORLD, business and costs | nuclear costs, uranium | Leave a comment

Oyster Creek Nuclear Plant uneconomic- to be shut down

Exelon may shut down oldest nuclear plant in U.S.Chicago Breaking Business March 18, 2010 Associated Press | Chicago-based Exelon Corp. says it will shut down the oldest nuclear power plant in the U.S., rather than build cooling towers mandated by environmental regulators in New Jersey. Exelon says the $800 million that it would cost to build the towers is more than the 40-year-old Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating Station is worth…..Earlier this year, New Jersey’s Department of Environmental Protection required the plant to build one or more cooling towers instead of relying on water drawn from the Oyster Creek in Lacey Township in New Jersey to cool the reactor.

The state says that process kills billions of shrimp and tens of thousands of fish, crabs and clams each year.

Exelon may shut down oldest nuclear plant in U.S. – Chicago Breaking Business

March 19, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear spin | Leave a comment

India’s “Nuclear Liability Bill” – a subsidy to USA business

“There is no legal liability of the foreign reactor supplier even if it supplies faulty and substandard equipment.”

Nuclear bill is hidden subsidy to US firms, says Left LittleAbout – from Indo-Asian News New Delhi, March 16 : The Left parties Tuesday urged MPs to reject the civil nuclear liability bill, saying it amounted to giving subsidies to US suppliers of proposed nuclear plants while disregarding the interests of the Indian people. Continue reading →

March 17, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, India | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear costs, nuclear secrecy, radioactive | Leave a comment

Depressing outlook for uranium sales: AREVA cuts back production

Waiting for Uranium Prices to Rise, By Melissa Pistilli Uranium Investing News, 15 March.2010, AREVA May Cut Production Depressing uranium prices have forced French uranium miner AREVA to plan a review of its projects, which may lead to a 20 per cent cut in its 2012 output target.

Last September, the company pegged its 2012 production number at 12,000 tonnes of U308, but now says uranium prices are too low to make production costs economical. Continue reading →

March 16, 2010 Posted by Christina Macpherson | business and costs, France | antinuclear, AREVA, nuclear, nuclear costs, uranium | Leave a comment

Foreign companies won’t have to pay for nuclear accidents in India

Nuke accident: India liable, not foreign suppliers?, NDTV , March 14, 2010, New Delhi, The government is set to introduce a contentious bill in Lok Sabha on Monday, which seeks to fix liability in case of a nuclear accident. Continue reading →