Fiscal stimulus and the environment
Greenstanding
Apr 2nd 2009
From The Economist print editionGordon Brown’s New Deal will do little to advance renewable energy
Mr Brown’s green New Deal looks flimsy. On March 31st HSBC, a big bank, published a report ranking countries by how green their economic-stimulus packages were. The bank reckons that Britain is allocating just 7% of its fiscal stimulus to greenery, compared with 12% in America, 34% in China and a whopping 81% in South Korea (see chart). A separate report prepared for Greenpeace, a pressure group, by consultants at the New Economics Foundation (NEF) considers only genuinely new funding and arrives at a figure of just 0.6%, or £120m……………………….
………………….It has moved speedily to revive the nuclear-power industry, by contrast. From a position of cordial dislike in 2003, the government announced itself in favour of new nuclear plants in principle as early as 2006.More recently ministers have been positively prescriptive, suggesting how many plants might be built and where. A takeover of British Energy, which runs most existing nuclear plants, by EDF, keen to build more, took place last year. A new nuclear laboratory has been founded, schemes to train workers set up and the vexed issue of waste disposal re-examined.Nuclear-power stations take many years to build, so new ones will not help Britain meet its 2020 targets for curbing emissions. But the technology is well understood. Politicians may have calculated that a few nuclear-power stations will be easier to sell the public than thousands of wind turbines. And energy does not have to be renewable to be low-carbon.
Fiscal stimulus and the environment | Greenstanding | The Economist
Uranium Suffering From GFC Too
FNArena News – April 01 2009
By Chris Shaw
Uranium prices have been under pressure in recent months and according to equity research group Resource Capital Research (RCR) the global financial crisis has been largely to blame as it has impacted on the market’s suppy/demand balance.
The group notes further price weakness is expected as while the spot price is currently US$42.50 per pound this is down from US$52.50 at the end of last year and the Fund Implied Price (FIP), which is a key leading indicator for spot prices, is currently at US$35.00 per pound. It has traded between US$30 and US$45 per pound in recent months………
……………….conditions are tougher for those companies at the production and development stage as they are facing funding challenges from the global financial crisis at the same time as permit and commissioning issues and other development factors are increasing related cost pressures.
Europe Won’t Buy Into Nuclear Power Until Waste Problem Is Solved
Europe Won’t Buy Into Nuclear Power Until Waste Problem Is Solved THE BUSINESS INSIDER Jay Yarow|Mar. 31, 2009, The renaissance of the nuclear power industry appears to be in a holding pattern. The two big problems: Lack of funding for the expensive construction of the reactors, and public skepticism about nuclear waste.
EE News attended a two-day nuclear energy conference last week and reported that Ute Blohm-Hieber, head of nuclear energy and waste management at the European Commission, agreed that waste is the “Achilles’ heel of the nuclear industry.” What’s interesting is that the news org didn’t have any word from the conference of workable solutions to the problem.
Europe Won’t Buy Into Nuclear Power Until Waste Problem Is Solved
Nearly $2 billion for Hanford cleanup
Nearly $2 billion for Hanford cleanup seattlepi.com By SHANNON DININNYASSOCIATED PRESS WRITERRICHLAND, Wash. — The Department of Energy plans to spend about $2 billion in stimulus money to speed some of the cleanup at south-central Washington’s highly contaminated Hanford nuclear reservation………………..The extra $2 billion equals what the federal government typically spends cleaning up Hanford each year……………………53 million gallons of radioactive brew, were left behind in 177 underground tanks. Some of those tanks are known to have leaked into the aquifer, threatening the neighboring Columbia River, and 144 tanks remain to be emptied.
A little insight into uranium
A little insight into uranium – Marketplace 27 march 09 – Interview with Tom Zoellner,”………………………….the Atomic Energy Commission gave these fantastic bonuses for prospectors and minors to go out into the American southwest and dig up as much of it as they could. This amounted to the last, kind of, gold rush in American history. And on the other side of the planet the Soviets were up to the same thing…………………………This is a really fascinating market, and talk about volatility. We’ve seen the price go up to 135 bucks a pound. It’s tied to perceptions of supply and demand. It’s tied to, most importantly, the prognosis for worldwide enthusiasm for nuclear power. And now with the president giving a signal that the United States is not going to rely on nuclear power as a short-term energy solution, this price is most likely going to drop further……………………………..what do you suppose the future of the uranium market is, at least in the short term? Zoellner: Dismal. Wall Street has consistently refused to finance the construction of new nuclear power and this has been the reality since the early ’80s.
Denison In Precarious Position, Time to Sell
Denison In Precarious Position, Time to Sell – RBC
Seeking Alpha 22 March 09 Denison Mines Inc. (DNN) shares continued to fall on Friday, as concerns grow that the uranium miner will violate one of its debt covenants and be forced to throw up a for-sale sign at its operations.
The company said Thursday that it will consider selling assets and has suspended operations at its Sunday and Rim mines in the Western U.S., in an attempt to combat mounting losses…………………….“We think Denison is in a very precarious position. The simplest solution to its problems is for the uranium spot prices to recover to higher than C$50 per pound. Other than that, the easiest thing for Denison to do is to sell assets,
Denison In Precarious Position, Time to Sell – RBC — Seeking Alpha
AREVA – France’s nuke power poster child has a money melt-down
France’s nuke power poster child has a money melt-down
THE FREE PRESS Harvey Wasserman March 19, 2009 The myth of a successful nuclear power industry in France has melted into financial chaos. With it dies the corporate-hyped poster child for a “nuclear renaissance” of new reactor construction that is drowning in red ink and radioactive waste.Areva, France’s nationally-owned corporate atomic fa�ade, has plunged into a deep financial crisis led by a devastating shortage of cash.Electricite de France, the French national utility, has been raided by European Union officials charging that its price-fixing may be undermining competition throughout the continent.Delays and cost overruns continue to escalate at Areva’s catastrophic Olkiluoto reactor construction project in Finland.
Areva has admitted to a $2.2 billion, or 55%, cost increase in the Finnish building site after three and a half years. The Flamanville project—the only one now being built in France—is already over $1 billion more expensive than projected after a single year under construction.In 2008, France’s nuclear power output dropped 0.1%, while wind generation rose more than 37%.Attempts to build new French reactors in the US are meeting stiffened resistance.
And the definitive failure of America’s Yucca Mountain nuke waste dump mirrors France’s parallel inability to deal with its own radioactive trash.Widely portrayed as the model of corporate success, reactor-builder Areva is desperately short of money. As it begs a bailout from its dominant owner, the French government, Areva’s mismanagement and overextension in promoting and building new reactors has wrecked its image in worldwide capital markets.
According to Mycle Schneider, Paris-based author of “Nuclear Power in France—Beyond the Myth,” Areva shares have plunged by over 60% since June 2008, twice as much as the CAC40, the standard indicator of the 40 largest French companies on the stock market…………….
…………….At the French heart of its “renaissance,” the nuclear clock is winding down, not up. Time is running out for a radioactive technology that, after fifty years, remains unable to muster a sustainable level of private financing, shows no real promise of ever paying for itself, and has now plunged into deepening financial chaos.
French state faces quandary with Areva
International Herald Tribune
By Marie Maitre Reuters
March 16, 2009
The French state faces a multibillion euro funding shortfall at the nuclear power company, Areva, and needs to take bold steps to keep it at the forefront of a global revival in nuclear power.
The government could raise hundreds of millions of euros by selling Areva’s financial investments or bringing in new investors, people with direct knowledge of the matter say.
But analysts said that such moves would not suffice to finance Areva’s medium-term ambitions.
………………… Areva needs €2.7 billion for capital expenditure in 2009 and another €7 billion for investments between 2010-2012. The money is for modernizing or building new production facilities, financing research and development for new nuclear reactors, and expanding its mining activities.
Areva also needs cash to finance the process of licensing its new-generation nuclear reactors in countries like Britain and the United States. Areva also needs at least €2 billion to buy back Siemens’s 34 percent stake in a reactor joint venture, under a previous agreement.
………………. observers said it might be a tough act to balance, adding that it was impossible to know whether the government would, in the end, opt for bold measures or the bare minimum……………….
http://www.iht.com/articles/2009/03/16/business/deal.php
Nuke French kiss to Canada?
Nuke French kiss
AECL could lose deal to build Ontario reactors to foreign firm
“…………………………..Documents obtained by the Canadian Press show over $1 billion of public funds going to the agency just in this year and last.That includes over $400 million directly into designing the new Candu.Finally, there is a growing consensus in the industry that the Ontario reactor deal is pretty well do or die for Atomic Energy.If the Ontario contract goes to one of the other bidders — the French giant Areva, or Westinghouse owned by Toshiba — so likely will the other Canadian deals.On the flip side, any government investing billions in a new reactor will naturally want to be sure it is the best value for taxpayers’ money — and that it works.AECL’s record of over-budget projects is so profound that it is doubtful any provincial government would order a Candu without a federal guarantee against cost overruns……………………………………….
Nuke French kiss | Greg Weston | Columnists | Comment | Winnipeg Sun
Paladin Energy chairman sells 500,000 shares – Insiders – FP Trading Desk
Paladin Energy chairman sells 500,000 shares – Insiders Financial Post Trading Desk March 10, 2009, by Jonathan RatnerUranium, Market Call, SEDI, Insiders, PaladinRick Crabb, chairman at Paladin Energy Ltd., sold 500,000 company shares through Rick Wayne Crabb and Carol Jean Crabb between Feb. 27 and March 6, 2009. These shares were sold for prices ranging from $2.29 to $2.45 each, bringing these holdings to 4,698,050 shares. Paladin………… focuses on uranium projects in Africa and Australia, ……….
……… In an interview with WA Business News last week, Mr. Crabb said his recent share sales were part of an effort to improve his “personal balance sheet” …………………………………
Paladin Energy chairman sells 500,000 shares – Insiders – FP Trading Desk
AREVA in trouble?
Areva May Sue Siemens on Nuclear Deal With Rosatom, Figaro Says
By Francois de Beaupuy
March 4 (Bloomberg) — Areva SA may sue Siemens AG because it agreed to create a venture with Rosatom Corp. to design, build and operate nuclear power plants, Le Figaro said, citing people close to Areva it didn’t name.
Siemens, which decided earlier this year that it would sell its 34 percent stake in a nuclear reactor building venture with Areva, must respect a clause that prevents it from competing with the French company on nuclear issues until 2020, the newspaper said.
Japan – nuclear power woes
Hiccups causing major delays at nuclear plant THE ASAHI SHIMBUN BY EISUKE SASAKI AND HIDENORI TSUBOYA 3 March 09 “……………….technical failures, responsible for yet another delay in two- decade-old efforts to launch the plant, are far from last-minute crinkles.
Not only have they proved frustratingly difficult to iron out, the problems at the Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant, conceived as a major link in Japan’s nuclear fuel recycling program, could shake the program to its foundations.
Plant operator Japan Nuclear Fuel Ltd. (JNFL) announced Jan. 30 it would postpone the end of testing from February to August–the 16th time it has delayed completion of the plant, which was originally due to go into full operation more than a decade ago, in 1997.
The technical troubles affecting one of its two glass melting furnaces, built to treat complex, heat-generating radioactive materials so that they can be buried safely in the ground, continue to confound JNFL.
When in operation, the Rokkasho plant will reprocess spent fuel from nuclear power stations in Japan to extract plutonium, which will be burned again to generate electricity. But the latest delay could jeopardize the nation’s nuclear fuel recycling policy.
The last five delays were due to malfunctions that occurred in the furnace in the process of vitrifying the liquid high-level radioactive waste…………………the Rokkasho plant employs technology developed in France,……………………Meanwhile, Japan’s fuel recycling program has come under scrutiny from the international community, which has asked questions about the country’s handling of weapons-grade plutonium. Among non-nuclear nations, Japan is the only country allowed under the international nonproliferation regime to produce plutonium in its reprocessing plant………………………….will leave a vast quantity of weapons-grade plutonium from the 31 tons already possessed by Japan–25 tons of which are in storage in Britain and France, where Japan sent spent fuel to be reprocessed from the 1980s, and 6 tons in Japan…………………the changing international political climate could affect Japan’s plans. Under the new administration of President Barack Obama, the United States will likely shift away from its nuclear fuel recycling policy.
asahi.com（朝日新聞社）：Hiccups causing major delays at nuclear plant – English
Russian “Nuclear Renaissance” Hits Roadblock
Russian “Nuclear Renaissance” Hits Roadblock msnbc Business 27 Feb 09 Financial resources and technical capabilities thwart ambitious plans Russia’s ambitions for its “nuclear renaissance” face many obstacles, concludes a report released today by The Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI).
The Russian Nuclear Industry: Status and Prospects provides a detailed analysis of the current state of the nuclear power industry in Russia and shows that although this industry has recently been greeted with renewed funding and enthusiasm, achieving its ambitious plans will require it to overcome considerable problems and limitations.
“Continuing a tendency from Soviet-era days, the Russian government has shown a predilection for developing grandiose plans for the expansion of the nuclear energy sector that are not fulfilled,” writes Miles Pomper, author of the paper. “While the first post-Soviet nuclear plans called for a total of 38 new nuclear reactors to be built, only three have actually been constructed and with capabilities that are not superior or even equal to its Western competitors.”
Russian “Nuclear Renaissance” Hits Roadblock – MSNBC Wire Services – msnbc.com
Anti-nuclear, not anti-development
Anti-nuclear, not anti-development FAIRVIEW POST 26 Feb 09 “………………….. I am all for the development of renewable energy sources — wind, solar, bio-gas and smart grids. I am definitely not in favor of more money spent on nuclear power. I am against being responsible for the costs associated with the storage of the nuclear waste associated with this proposal. The nuclear industry should pay those costs, the taxpayer shouldn’t have to. I am against being responsible for any capital cost overruns that a nuclear facility runs up. They should have to foot the bill just like any other industry, the taxpayer shouldn’t have to. How many people are even aware of the fact that capital cost overruns for the nuclear industry in Canada come right out of taxpayer’s pockets? The nuclear industry in Canada has been operating at a loss since it’s inception, relying on constant taxpayer handouts to stay afloat.
Putting a leaky nuclear facility in the midst of 25,000 area residents is not a good idea. According to the information sessions I attended, Bruce Power is planning on storing radioactive waste on site. What guarantee can they give us that our groundwater will not be affected? According to a site called the Bruce Centre for Energy Research and Information, which is located in the heart of Bruce County, the Bruce nuclear complex has two radioactive waste storage sites that are leaking tritium into groundwater monitoring wells. Groundwater sampling holes from Site 1 have in the past exceeded 203,500 Bq/L for tritium. The report states that the waste from site 1 is being moved to site 2, and that one groundwater sampling hole at site 2 has recently exceeded 12,000 Bq/L. In Canada the “safe” amount of tritium in drinking water is 7,000 Bq/L (versus 740 in the States, and 100 in Europe). I, like many people in our area, get my water straight from the ground. What would a leak like those mentioned do to the local water supply?
So, am I anti-development? Not on your life. Bring on all the green, renewable, clean energy sources we can develop, like solar, and wind, and bio-gas. Am I anti nuclear? You bet I am. Nuclear power in Ontario has shown itself to be a money-sucking black hole, relying on a constant stream of taxpayers’ cash to stay afloat. So why would anyone but a bunch of business people want a toxic dinosaur erected here? Develop something modern, stop flogging a dying horse.
Dan Streeter, Grimshaw
Anti-nuclear, not anti-development – Fairview Post – Alberta, CA
Nuclear power: The next bailout
Nuclear power: The next bailout
Central Penn Business Journal By Eric Epstein
2/23/2009 – “……………………
Jim Rubens, former chairman of the New Hampshire Republican Party, observed, “My party, the Republican party, is too deep in bed with the coal, oil and electric utility industries to remember its free market principles.”
Turns out politicians from both parties know what’s best after all. Welcome to this century’s version of corporate socialism.
Since Wall Street deferred, Congress and former President Bush approved nuclear loan guarantees for new nuclear reactors in the Energy Policy Act of 2005. In December 2007, $18.5 billion was set aside in federal loan guarantees. An additional $2 billion was allocated for new uranium enrichment. And nuclear power companies were guaranteed $2 billion in federal insurance to cover construction delays caused by court challenges or any other distraction outside “normal business risks.”
The Department of Energy actually admitted that $18.5 billion would build just two new reactors. The program is over subscribed with $75 billion in requests.
Is there exposure for Joe Q. Taxpayer?
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) considers the risk of default on government nuclear plant loan guarantees “to be very high – well above 50 percent.” In a report issued on May 7, the CBO concluded the risk of default by private companies comes from the expectation that a new nuclear plant “would be uneconomic to operate because of high construction costs, relative to other electricity generation sources.”
1 This Month
22 June – Virtual Event –Climate Change: New Data, New Debate
Monday, June 22, 2026 2:30 p.m. – 3:15 p.m. CT
YouTube. Register here
25 June- THE PUKE ON NUKES
Thursday, June 25, 2026
7pm Central Time (8pm ET, 6pm MT, 5pm PT) UTC – 5
From NRC & DOE Deregulation to Techno-Fascist Billionaires Going Nuclear, Plus a Few Songs from Atomic Cabaret REGISTER
26 June – Radiation Trainwreck at the NRC / Join the Protect Better Campaign – https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/4ZlZ5_qLSHGiLSCg8FF6Bg#/registration
1st July – Webinar Waste of Space: The Environmental Harm of Military and Civil Space Activity st July, 7 pm
Report Launch Online: We are seeing an increasing exploitation of space for military and commercial purposes. This must change.
Protect Sazan Island from the Trump family! https://secure.avaaz.org/campaign/en/protect_sazan_island_from_the_trump_family_loc/?bqFCVab&v=174511&cl=22707147157&_checksum=5e9dde668860e8231c33699735e16a1fbf22ab2cb01da50c999fe8732b9775ef&utm_source=email&utm_medium=blast_email&utm_campaign=174511
Cuba Is Not a Failed State – It Is a Besieged State
PETITION: “Global Appeal to Endorse Palestinian Right of Return of Refugees”
To see nuclear-related stories in greater depth and intensity – go to https://nuclearinformation.wordpress.com
-
Archives
- June 2026 (227)
- May 2026 (306)
- April 2026 (356)
- March 2026 (251)
- February 2026 (268)
- January 2026 (308)
- December 2025 (358)
- November 2025 (359)
- October 2025 (376)
- September 2025 (257)
- August 2025 (319)
- July 2025 (230)
-
Categories
- 1
- 1 NUCLEAR ISSUES
- business and costs
- climate change
- culture and arts
- ENERGY
- environment
- health
- history
- indigenous issues
- Legal
- marketing of nuclear
- media
- opposition to nuclear
- PERSONAL STORIES
- politics
- politics international
- Religion and ethics
- safety
- secrets,lies and civil liberties
- spinbuster
- technology
- Uranium
- wastes
- weapons and war
- Women
- 2 WORLD
- ACTION
- AFRICA
- Atrocities
- AUSTRALIA
- Christina's notes
- Christina's themes
- culture and arts
- Events
- Fuk 2022
- Fuk 2023
- Fukushima 2017
- Fukushima 2018
- fukushima 2019
- Fukushima 2020
- Fukushima 2021
- general
- global warming
- Humour (God we need it)
- Nuclear
- RARE EARTHS
- Reference
- resources – print
- Resources -audiovicual
- Weekly Newsletter
- World
- World Nuclear
- YouTube
-
RSS
Entries RSS
Comments RSS
nuclear-news 
Your Comments
View/Leave Comment
Greg Weston get your facts straight. The reactor (European Pressurized Reactor) that Areva is currently building in Finland is 3 years late, 50% over budget and still not done yet. Areva has only sold 4 of these European Pressurized Reactors in the past. One to Finland, one to France and two to China. You were only off by 96 when you said Areva has built 100 of these already. Not to mention that Teollisuuden Voima, the Finnish company that purchased the reactor, is seeking damages of $3.9 billion because of the delays thus far. Also, Siemens, the German company that partnered with Teollisuuden Voima on this Finnish project, is now looking to pull out because of all of the problems with construction.
E.B., March 12th 2009, 2:08pm