NuScale Power, UAMPS agree to terminate nuclear project
Reuters, November 9, 2023
– NuScale Power (SMR.N) said on Wednesday it has mutually agreed with Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems (UAMPS) to terminate the company’s small modular reactors project, sending shares sliding 20% in extended trading.
The six-reactor, 462 megawatt Carbon Free Power Project was expected to be the first small modular reactor (SMR) design certified by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in January. But NuScale said it appeared unlikely the project will have enough subscription to continue toward deployment.
NuScale said in January the target price for power from the plant is $89 per megawatt hour, up 53% from the previous estimate of $58 per MWh, a jump that raised concerns about whether customers would be willing to pay.
SMRs are meant to fit new applications such as replacing shut coal plants and being located in more remote communities.
So far, the design for only NuScale Power Corp’s SMR had been approved by U.S. regulators.
NuScale had previously said the project will be fully running in 2030.
Reporting by Manas Mishra in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta and Krishna Chandra Eluri #nuclear #antinuclear #nuclearfree #NoNukes
Flagship US nuclear reactor project collapses owing taxpayers $600m
Ben Potter, Australian Financial Review, 9 Nov 23
A flagship US small modular nuclear reactor project has collapsed, taking with it $US600 million ($930 million) of American taxpayers’ money.
Develop NuScale said the Portland, Oregon-based company and Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems (UAMPS) had agreed to terminate their Carbon Free Power Project after cost blowouts scared off potential customers.
“It appears unlikely that the project will have enough subscription to continue toward deployment,” NuScale said in a statement.
Its shares fell 30 per cent in after-market trade, on top of a 70 per cent decline for the year to date.
The Utah project to build a 462-megawatt small modular reactor was one of a handful aimed at demonstrating the commercial viability of SMRs.
The nuclear industry is pinning its hopes on the ambitious technology as a zero-carbon option for firming variable renewable energy after massive cost blowouts in conventional large-scale nuclear reactors in the US and UK.
It has been enthusiastically promoted by Opposition Leader Peter Dutton and his energy spokesman Ted O’Brien. However, Energy and Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen and local experts such as The Grattan Institute’s Tony Wood have dismissed the technology as too costly and too far away in terms of implementation to be of use to Australia’s faltering grid decarbonisation.
A small modular reactor project being pursued by Ontario Power Generation remains on foot.
……………………………………………………..Reuters reported the US Department of Energy had agreed to provide $US1.35 billion to the collapsed project over 10 years, of which about $US600 million had been disbursed since 2014.
Municipal participants in the project were unnerved when the indicative wholesale cost of power from the Utah project jumped to $US89 per megawatt hour ($A137/MWh) from $US58/ MWh last January.
Mr Bowen said: “The opposition’s only energy policy is small modular reactors. Today, the most advanced prototype in the US has been cancelled. The LNP’s plan for energy security is just more hot air from Peter Dutton.” ……………………………………. https://www.afr.com/policy/energy-and-climate/flagship-us-nuclear-reactor-project-collapses-owing-taxpayers-930m-20231109-p5eit0 #nuclear #antinuclear #nuclearfree #NoNukes
Business complications for SMR companies X-energy and NuScale – 6 November last day of trading in public shares
NEI Magazine, 3 November 2023
US-based X-Energy Reactor Company and publicly-traded special purpose acquisition company Ares Acquisition Corporation (AAC), have mutually agreed to terminate their previously announced business combination agreement with immediate effect. ……. X-energy and AAC agreed not to proceed with the transaction citing “challenging market conditions, peer-company trading performance and a balancing of the benefits and drawbacks”.
……………………………………….Neither party is required to pay the other a termination fee as a result of the mutual decision to terminate the agreement. AAC determined that it will not be able to consummate an initial business combination within the time period required by its amended and restated memorandum and articles of association and intends to dissolve and liquidate. AAC anticipates that the last day of trading in the public shares will be 6 November…………………….
NuScale is also facing difficulties after a lengthy report by Iceberg Research entitled “Nuscale Power ($SMR): A fake customer and a major contract in peril cast doubt on NuScale’s viability”. Iceberg alleged that NuScale had sold 24 reactors to a “fake customer”. This referenced a deal NuScale announced in October to supply Standard Power with 1,848 MWe of power provided by 24 SMRs to power two US data centre sites. Iceberg predicts Standard Power will be unable to support the contract.
……………………………….. The Standard Power deal is bigger than NuScale’s other contract, with the government-backed Carbon Free Power Project (CFPP) to provide Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems (UAMPS) with 462 MWe. Iceberg said NuScale has “around 15 months before its cash runs out” and that the UAMPS contract is reaching a crucial stage. Overall shares in NuScale have fallen around 75% since their peak in late 2022, from around $14 to around $3.5……………………………………………………………………………… https://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsbusiness-complications-for-smr-companies-x-energy-and-nuscale-11268599. #nuclear #antinuclear #nuclearfree #NoNukes #smr
Small modular nuclear reactor merger plan falls through
X-energy, Ares drop merger plan, 31 October 2023
Small modular reactor (SMR) and advanced fuel technology developer X-Energy Reactor Company – known as X-energy – and Ares Acquisition Corporation (AAC) have “mutually agreed to terminate their previously announced business combination agreement, effective immediately”.
In December last year, X-energy and AAC – a publicly traded special purpose acquisition company affiliated with global alternative investment manager Ares Management Corporation – entered into a definitive business combination agreement. The combination was set to establish X-energy as a publicly traded company, a move that was expected to accelerate the company’s growth strategy.
………………………………….., given challenging market conditions, peer-company trading performance and a balancing of the benefits and drawbacks of becoming a publicly traded company under current circumstances, X-energy and AAC jointly determined that it was the best course of action at this time not to proceed with their previously announced transaction.”
……………………….”In view of the termination of the Business Combination Agreement, AAC determined that it will not be able to consummate an initial business combination within the time period required by its amended and restated memorandum and articles of association,” the statement said. “As such, AAC intends to dissolve and liquidate in accordance with the provisions of the articles.”
X-energy is the developer of the Xe-100 pebble bed high-temperature gas reactor…………………… https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/X-energy,-Ares-drop-merger-plan #nuclear #antinuclear #nuclearfree #NoNukes
Macron pursues nuclear deals in Russia’s back yard
French president hopes to secure uranium supply in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
Politico, BY GIORGIO LEALI, OCTOBER 31, 2023
PARIS — French President Emmanuel Macron travels on Wednesday to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, where he hopes to secure uranium for his country’s nuclear plants.
The trip comes as geopolitical tensions grow with the EU’s current major suppliers, Niger and Russia.
Macron’s visit to the two countries aims to expand French influence in an area which has strong ties with Russia and is now also growing closer to China, an Elysée official said………………….
Last summer a military junta took over Niger, which supplies 15 percent of France’s uranium needs, sparking questions as to whether the African country can continue to be a reliable source. Uncertainty has also surrounded imports of Russian uranium since Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
“Niger raises questions, Russia could raise questions in the long term [if] the EU imposes sanctions on the nuclear sector.
An Elysée official said that new contracts and business partnerships will be announced during the trip, including in the energy sector. ………………………………………………………………………..
EDF has also positioned itself to become a supplier of nuclear reactors for Kazakhstan’s first nuclear plant.
The visit comes as Brussels competes with China for influence in the region via investment programs focused on infrastructure.
Both Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan are benefitting from Chinese investment under Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative, with their presidents attending a high-level meeting on the subject in Beijing in October. The EU is trying to gain influence in the two countries by involving them in cooperation and investment projects under its “Global Gateway” initiative, the bloc’s response to Belt and Road. https://www.politico.eu/article/emmanuel-macron-nuclear-deal-russia-back-yard-kazakhstan-uzbekistan/ #nuclear #antinuclear #nuclearfree #NoNukes
Reports Expose US Billionaires and Corporate Profiteers Enabling Israel’s War on Gaza
“As the Biden administration attempts to deny the death toll of Israel’s campaign of mass murder in Gaza and sell genocide as a stimulus for the U.S. economy, these are the death merchants profiting from the war machine.”
By Jessica Corbett / Common Dreams, October 29, 2023
With more than 7,300 Palestinians killed so far in Israel’s three-week bombardment of Gaza, a series of reports this week have exposed how U.S. weapon-makers and billionaire donors are enabling what legal scholars say could amount to genocide.
After Israel declared war in response to Hamas killing over 1,400 Israelis and taking around 200 hostages, the stocks of major American and European war profiteers soared. A Thursday report from Eyes on the Ties—the news site of LittleSis and Public Accountability Initiative—targets five U.S. firms with a record of providing weaponry to Israel.
The outlet stressed that while announcing a supplemental funding request that includes $14.3 billion for Israel, U.S. President Joe Biden last week “invoked ‘patriotic American workers’ who are ‘building the arsenal of democracy and serving the cause of freedom,’ but it’s the defense company CEOs who rake in tens of millions a year, and Wall Street shareholders, who are the real beneficiaries of warmongering.”
The five targeted industry giants collectively recorded $196.5 billion in military-related revenue last year, Eyes on the Tiesreported. They are Boeing ($30.8 billion), General Dynamics ($30.4 billion), Lockheed Martin ($63.3 billion), Northrop Grumman ($32.4 billion), and RTX, formerlyRaytheon ($39.6 billion).
“The top shareholders in these five defense companies largely consist of big asset managers, or big banks with asset management wings, that include BlackRock, Vanguard, State Street, Fidelity, Capital Group, Wellington, JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley, Newport Trust Company, Longview Asset Management, Massachusetts Financial Services Company, Geode Capital, and Bank of America,” the news outlet noted.
Eyes on the Ties also highlighted how chief executives are handsomely compensated—and the CEOs’ ties to Big Pharma, the fossil fuel industry, Wall Street, and foreign policy think tanks such as the Council on Foreign Relations and Center for Strategic and International Studies.
According to the report:
- Boeing CEO David Calhoun took in over $64 million in total compensation from 2020-22 and as of February held 193,247 shares;
- General Dynamics CEO Phebe N. Novakovic took in over $64 millionin total compensation from 202-22 and as of March held 1,616,279shares;
- Lockheed Martin CEO Jim Taiclet took in over $66 million in total compensation from 2020-22 and as of February held 56,054 shares;
- Northrop Grumman CEO Kathy J. Warden took in over $61 million in total compensation from 2020-22 and as of March held 161,231shares; and
- RTX CEO Gregory J. Hayes took in over $63 million in total compensation from 2020-22 and as of February held 801,339 shares.
Other reporting this week has taken aim at those CEOs for their suggestions that Israel’s assault on Gaza is good for business.
During Lockheed Martin’s latest earnings call, Taiclet correctly predicted Biden’s request last week, saying that “there continues to be the option… for supplemental requests related to support Ukraine, Israel, and potentially Taiwan.”
In addition to the request for Israel—which already gets nearly $4 billion in annual U.S. military aid—Biden asked for $4 billion to counter Chinese influence in the Indo-Pacific region and $61.4 billion more for Ukraine, which is battling a Russian invasion. …………………………………………………
It’s not just defense executives enabling Israel’s mass slaughter of civilians in Gaza. As Eyes on the Ties reported, “Lobbying groups including the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) and Democratic Majority for Israel have been active in Washington, calling on lawmakers to send money and weapons to Israel.”
The report names some billionaire donors to the lobbying groups, including New England Patriots and the Kraft Group CEO Robert Kraft, private equity investor Marc Rowan, venture capitalist Gary Lauder, hedge fund managers Daniel Loeb and Paul Singer, and Home Depot co-founder Bernard Marcus, who is also the founding president of the Israel Democracy Institute.
U.S. Rep. Summer Lee (D-Pa.) said Wednesday that Americans “know that funneling billions more dollars into arms dealers’ pockets won’t keep our children safe from weapons of war at home or across the world. It won’t keep our loved ones safe from toxins in our air and drinking water. They know that lining the pockets of weapons manufacturers won’t help families struggling to afford housing, medicine, or grocery costs. They know defense contractors won’t safeguard Medicare and Social Security or shield our communities against the climate crisis.”
Unlike the CEOs of firms like Lockheed Martin and RTX, “moms who can’t afford childcare, young folks who can’t pay off their debt, veterans who can’t keep up with housing costs, and children who go to school hungry don’t have million-dollar lobbying budgets,” added Lee, one of the few members of Congress pushing for a cease-fire in Gaza. “So it’s up to us to stand up for their needs.” https://scheerpost.com/2023/10/29/reports-expose-us-billionaires-and-corporate-profiteers-enabling-israels-war-on-gaza/ #Israel #Palestine
Nuclear Waste Management market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 1.4% by 2034: Visiongain
Yahoo! Finance, Visiongain Reports Ltd, Mon, October 30, 2023
Visiongain has published a new report entitled Nuclear Waste Management Market Report 2024-2034: Forecasts by Solutions (Waste Sorting, Waste Treatment and Conditioning, Waste Storage and Disposal), by Type (Very-Low-Level Waste (VLLW), Low-Level Waste (LLW), Intermediate-Level Waste (ILW), High Level Waste (HLW)), by Disposal Method (Transmutation, Seabed Disposal, Space Disposal, Encapsulation and Burial, Synthetic Rock Formations), by Source (Decommissioning/Remediation, Reactor Operations, Military and Defence Programs, Nuclear Applications, Fuel Reprocessing, Fuel Fabrication/Enrichment) AND Regional and Leading National Market Analysis PLUS Analysis of Leading Companies AND COVID-19 Impact and Recovery Pattern Analysis.
The global nuclear waste management market was valued at US$4,864.0 million in 2023 and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 1.4% during the forecast period 2024-2034.
Economic Viability: Balancing Costs and Long-term Commitments
Economic viability is a crucial factor in nuclear waste management endeavours. Companies must strategically balance initial investments in advanced technologies with long-term costs associated with waste containment and disposal. Effective financial planning ensures the availability of funds for continuous research, facility maintenance, and adherence to evolving regulatory requirements. Finding cost-effective solutions without compromising safety and environmental integrity is essential for the industry’s sustained growth and for ensuring that nuclear waste management remains both efficient and financially feasible………………………………………………………… more https://finance.yahoo.com/news/nuclear-waste-management-market-projected-090000621.html #nuclear #antinuclear #nuclearfree #NoNukes
Hinkley Point C nuclear station-£16.7bn overbudget: Estimated to be 5 years late
From
From HS2 to Wembley, why can’t Britain build on budget? Our
infrastructure projects are invariably late and over-budget compared with
European neighbours. Our planning system, political wrangling and a lack of
civil service expertise is to blame. Hinkley Point C: Final Cost £32.7bn:
£16.7bn overbudget: Estimated to be 5 years late. #nuclear #antinuclear #NoNukes
Times 29th Oct 2023 https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/from-hs2-to-wembley-why-cant-britain-build-on-budget-9k6xgs8c6
Amid rising cost worries, UK government promises “practical nuclear roadmap”
Government promises ‘practical’ UK nuclear roadmap this year amid rising cost concerns.
Stuart Stone, 26 October 2023
Government agrees to map out route to 24GW nuclear target by 2050 and
allow Parliament to consider major investment value for money amid fears of
‘another HS2’.
The government has promised set out a “practical roadmap”
before the end of the year towards its goal of securing 24GW of nuclear
power capacity 2050, but MPs have raised concerns as to whether new nuclear
generation will offer value for money in light of the controversial
decision to cancel the northern leg of the HS2 high speed rail project.
In a letter to MPs on the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee (SITC)
yesterday, the government confirmed that a new Nuclear Strategic Plan is on
its way, and that it would spell out how the current reactor fleet will
contribute to UK targets and allow Parliament to weigh up value for money
of major new nuclear projects.
It follows a report from the SITC in July
which had called for greater detail on how the government plans to meet its
ambitious nuclear targets, as it cited the UK’s “intermittent history” with
regards to ramping up nuclear power capacity, with no new reactors having
been built in several decades. The report warned that UK nuclear capacity –
which currently contributes 15 per cent of the electricity needs – is set
to fall substantially by 2028 when all plants bar Sizewell B are scheduled
to reach the end of their operational lives.
Business Green 26th Oct 2023
https://www.businessgreen.com/news/4138819/government-promises-practical-uk-nuclear-roadmap-amid-rising-cost-concerns #nuclear #antinuclear #NoNukes
Why consumers are very likely to pay a lot more for power from Sizewell C than from Hinkley C
under the RAB mechanism, it seems that EDF will be paid for what they actually spend. This time it will be British, not French taxpayers and consumers, that will be paying for the cost overruns.
The Government are deceiving us about the cost effectivemess of their new funding mechanism for nuclear power
Dave Toke’s Green Energy Blog, DAVID TOKE, OCT 25, 2023
Consumers face a double whammy of bills to pay for the planned nuclear power plant, Sizewell C, due to be given a go-ahead soon. According to a ‘worst case scenario,’ consumers are likely to (collectively) pay around £34 billion in today’s prices before any electricity is generated from Sizewell C at all. But, in addition, according to my calculations, under this (quite likely) worst-case scenario consumers will then also pay around £160 per MWh in today’s prices for electricity produced by Sizewell C. This works out as £117 per MWh in 2012 prices (ie the base year for setting the cost of Hinkley C). The Government appears to be doing little or nothing to prevent this scenario from occurring.
Hence consumers could not only be paying much more per MWh than the controversially high Hinkley C deal (£92.5 per MWh in 2012 prices) but will also be paying large sums upfront before a kWh is even generated. In fact, despite being labeled as a ‘worst case scenario’, the estimate for Sizewell C costs that have been calculated is essentially based on the type of cost overrun experienced by attempts to build nuclear power plants in the West since 1990. That is nuclear construction costs end up being around double the amount initially budgeted.
I have taken the size of the upfront costs payable by consumers from an analysis done by Professor Stephen Thomas of Greenwich University. See also here. I have then taken his worst-case scenario figure for these upfront costs and converted them into a figure for costs per MWh by applying conventional economic tools. This involves using discounted cash flow analysis using a (real) 6 percent discount rate and assuming Sizewell C will be generating at an average of 90 percent of full capacity. This assumes using a contract type paying premium prices for energy generated similar to that used for Hinkley C (ie lasting for 35 years). I have based cost estimates of operating nuclear power plants on US experience, although operating costs form only a small element of the costs. The large bulk of the costs are concerned with repaying money loaned and invested in the power station.
My analysis runs contrary to the narrative spread by the Government. They claim that the so-called Regulated Asset Base (RAB) mechanism for funding new nuclear power plants will make nuclear power cheaper for the consumer. On the contrary, it is likely to allow more to be paid to EDF for Sizewell C compared to Hinkley C. This is because consumers will be responsible for paying cost overruns for Sizewell C whilst in the case of Hinkley C it is EDF that takes responsibility for cost overruns. The total amounts that consumers will have to pay will remain unknown until it is far too late to do anything to stop consumers from having their electricity bills dramatically increased………………..
The RAB mechanism has been lauded as a cost-saver because it allows EDF to pay lower interest rates on money borrowed to finance construction compared to the borrowing costs applicable to building Hinkley C. Money needed to finance interest payments and investors during the construction period is charged to consumers whilst the plant is being built.
There’s one giant flaw in this argument. The Government seems to be heading towards giving the go-ahead to EDF to start construction without agreeing a price to be paid for electricity. This means that consumers will pay for whatever it costs to build the plant. The costs of nuclear power stations seem always to be a lot more than what was estimated at the time of the ‘final investment decision’ (FID).
This is different from what happened with Hinkley C. In the case of Hinkley C EDF was committed to paying for any cost overruns themselves without being paid any extra money. ………… EDF bears responsibility for these cost overruns – in effect the French taxpayers will pay since EDF is owned by the French Government.
Yet under the RAB mechanism, it seems that EDF will be paid for what they actually spend. This time it will be British, not French taxpayers and consumers, that will be paying for the cost overruns. OFGEM is being given responsibility for organising payments to EDF.
Ultimately, it seems, OFGEM will be the ‘fall guy’ when, many years down the line, there is public controversy over the costs of the power from Sizewell C. In an obscure piece of wording in an obscure document entitled ‘Revenue Stream for the nuclear RAB model’, the government says (page 12) ‘The amount a relevant licensee nuclear company is allowed to receive (‘allowed revenue’) in respect of its activities relating to the design, construction, commissioning, and operation of the relevant nuclear project would be determined by Ofgem’.
In other words, EDF will have virtually a blank cheque to pay all their costs. The only control OFGEM will have is to check that the costs have actually been spent or will be spent on the power plant.
People were surprised at the cost of the Hinkley C contract, but the surprise was based on the public being kept in ignorance of nuclear construction costs in the past. Now the Government has learned its lesson, and we shall see a return to the past practice of the public being kept in the dark about the costs of building nuclear power plants…………………………………………… https://davidtoke.substack.com/p/why-consumers-are-very-likely-to
Faulty coolant pump delays commissioning of Vogtle 4 nuclear reactor: project cost now over $30Billion
US Georgia Power has reported the discovery of a malfunctioning coolant
pump at unit 4 of its Vogtle NPP, resulting in a delay in commissioning of
the unit. The problem in one of the reactor’s four pumps was found during
pre-operational testing and startup of the unit, which had been expected
begin operation later this year. Instead, the reactor now is forecast to
begin operations in the first quarter of 2024.
Fuel loading at Vogtle 4 began in August. Unit 3 began commercial operation at the end of
July. Vogtle 3&4 are both 1,117 MWe Westinghouse AP1000 pressurised water
reactors (PWRs). The two units were originally expected to cost about $14bn
and to enter service in 2016 and 2017 but suffered a series of delays,
including Westinghouse’s bankruptcy in 2017.
The total cost of the project
to build Vogtle 3&4 is now put at more than $30bn. Georgia Power owns 45.7%
of the project; Oglethorpe Power Corp owns 30%; the Municipal Electric
Authority of Georgia (MEAG) owns 22.7%; and the city of Dalton owns 1.6%.
The units will be operated by Southern Nuclear.
Nuclear Engineering International 11th Oct 2023
https://www.neimagazine.com/news/newsfaulty-coolant-pump-delays-commissioning-of-vogtle-4-11210696 #nuclear #antinuclear #NoNukes #NuclearCosts
The future of Luc Rémont at the head of EDF called into question by tensions over the regulation of electricity prices.
The differences between
the government and EDF, which are currently discussing the future
regulatory framework for electricity prices, make several officials of the
public company fear a possible resignation of Luc Rémont, the group’s CEO.
L’Usine Nouvelle 25th Oct 2023
Germany and France finally agree on a plan to subsidise the nuclear industry
Germany And France Finally Compromise On Nuclear.
Oil Price.comBy Leonard Hyman & William Tilles – Oct 24, 2023,
- After a long period of disagreement, France and Germany finally reached a deal on electricity markets.
- The Germans and French seized on a solution used in the UK for a quarter century to give the appearance of a functioning market: the contract for differences.
- In an effort to find equilibrium between the European Union’s two biggest members, ministers reached a consensus that governments “have the option” to implement CfD’s for established nuclear reactors.
“……………………………………….. . France depends heavily on nuclear power generated by state-owned EDF. Existing French nuclear plants will require major capital improvements and the plants under construction are enormously expensive. The French government wants to subsidize its nuclear program, but other European Union (EU) countries (especially Germany) objected, because state subsidies are not in the spirit of the EU’s energy markets.
The market should determine prices, and should determine the appropriate means to supply the demand, the opponents argue. ……………………………
Europeans woke up to the likelihood that their unsubsidized firms would have to compete with heavily subsidized Chinese and American competitors. Furthermore, European firms looking at those American subsidies started talking about moving their facilities to the US, to qualify for the subsidies.
………………………………….. the risks of building a big nuclear plant are too great for any private enterprise to undertake. So the government has to step up to provide funds for the project.
The Germans and French seized on a solution used in the UK for a quarter century to give the appearance of a functioning market: the contract for differences. It works like this. The power producer sets a strike price with the buyer (who has signed a multiyear year agreement to buy the electricity). When the market price the generator can collect exceeds the strike price, the generator has to refund the surplus to the buyer. When the market price falls below the strike price, the buyer has to give the difference to the generator. Now here is the key to the deal. The strike price does not result from market forces but rather from the revenue needed to cover the cost of building or maintaining a nuclear unit, which the buyers cannot evade unless the nuke stops operating. The state, in the end, sets the price, and determines the terms of what really is a long term fixed contract made with a buyer that has no choice but to buy. In other words, this is not a commercial transaction, because in free markets, buyers have a choice: to buy or not buy.
To us, this deal, if it gets approval from the EU, signals that the EU fully acknowledges that choosing nuclear power is a political decision. And that expanding nuclear power requires government actions and explicit government financial support. That clears the air. Now let’s see what the policymakers do. https://oilprice.com/Alternative-Energy/Nuclear-Power/Germany-And-France-Finally-Compromise-On-Nuclear.html #nuclear #antinuclear #nuclearfree #NoNukes
Why NuScale Power Stock Got Thrashed on Thursday
Nasdaq October 19, 2023 Eric Volkman for The Motley Fool
A short-seller report gave investors plenty to worry about with NuScale Power (NYSE: SMR) stock on Thursday. On the back of that document, which criticized the nuclear reactor maker harshly at times, the company’s share price fell at double-digit rates. It ended the day nearly 12% lower, while the gloomy S&P 500 index only sank by 0.9%.
A short seller vented on NuScale
That morning, a firm called Iceberg Research published that NuScale Power report. This came not long after NuScale announced earlier this month that it had signed a contract to build a pair of its reactors for a U.S. company called Standard Power.
Iceberg poured freezing cold water on this arrangement, describing the deal as having no chance of being completed. In its view, Standard Power does not have the means to fulfill contracts of such size; it also said that Standard Power’s managing director, Adam Swickle, was found guilty of securities fraud some time ago.
While NuScale has what Iceberg describes as a “more credible contract” with Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems, the short seller does not feel that NuScale has a good chance of completing it.
According to Iceberg’s analysis, NuScale has only 15 months or so left of cash to finance its operations — quite a narrow window for a dramatic turnaround in fortunes.
A short-seller report gave investors plenty to worry about with NuScale Power (NYSE: SMR) stock on Thursday. On the back of that document, which criticized the nuclear reactor maker harshly at times, the company’s share price fell at double-digit rates. It ended the day nearly 12% lower, while the gloomy S&P 500 index only sank by 0.9%.
A short seller vented on NuScale
That morning, a firm called Iceberg Research published that NuScale Power report. This came not long after NuScale announced earlier this month that it had signed a contract to build a pair of its reactors for a U.S. company called Standard Power.
Iceberg poured freezing cold water on this arrangement, describing the deal as having no chance of being completed. In its view, Standard Power does not have the means to fulfill contracts of such size; it also said that Standard Power’s managing director, Adam Swickle, was found guilty of securities fraud some time ago.
While NuScale has what Iceberg describes as a “more credible contract” with Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems, the short seller does not feel that NuScale has a good chance of completing it.
According to Iceberg’s analysis, NuScale has only 15 months or so left of cash to finance its operations — quite a narrow window for a dramatic turnaround in fortunes.
Accusations of low-value equity
Iceberg doesn’t see a good way out with NuScale. It wrote in conclusion that “The company is struggling and we believe its equity has little to no value without government support.”
“Even if that support continues, the DOE’s usual policy is that costs have to be shared with the private sector, meaning that existing shareholders will be diluted,” the short seller added.
NuScale has not yet publicly responded to the report……. https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/why-nuscale-power-stock-got-thrashed-on-thursday #nuclear #antinuclear #nuclearfree #NoNukes
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Germany caves in to French demands for government subsidies to the nuclear industry in the EU electricity market
Germany has given leeway for France to use state subsidies to fund its
nuclear power plants, unblocking a long-stalled reform of the EU
electricity market in the face of vast state aid regimes in China and the
US.
The agreement reached on Tuesday among energy ministers in Luxembourg
will mean that France could use government support to finance its largely
state-owned nuclear plants, which generate about 70 per cent of its
electricity.
Such a move had been heavily contested by Germany, Austria and
Luxembourg, which have been historically opposed to nuclear power but also
feared that allowing Paris to subsidise its nuclear plants would provide
French industry with structurally lower energy prices, giving it a
competitive advantage.
As part of the new EU rules for the bloc’s
electricity market, France will be allowed to use funding structures known
as contracts for difference. These set a minimum price guarantee for power
providers, as well as a ceiling above which the state can recover any
revenue.
FT 17th Oct 2023
https://www.ft.com/content/73629c7f-d8a8-4d31-9487-02301c9fe894 #nuclear #antinuclear #nuclearfree #NoNukes
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