Soaring costs for new nuclear power leave UK govt with a dilemma
The government will publish draft strike prices next year, but has promised to give developers such as EDF and Centrica temporary assurances to bridge the gap and allow them to move ahead with Hinkley Point.
The price they come up with is bound to come under intense scrutiny. Critics will see a high level as a massive subsidy for nuclear, but if it is too low EDF and Centrica could walk away.
Strike price key to new nuclear plants FT.com By Guy Chazan and Rebecca Bream, 23 July 12, When the Blair government first backed the idea of a new generation of nuclear plants in 2007, energy companies insisted they could build them without any public subsidy. Five years later, that claim seems painfully naive.
In the intervening years, the cost of new reactors has risen so fast that constructing them without any government support has become unthinkable.
The evidence for this change is not hard to find. Continue reading
Scotland alarmed at British governments snide subsidies for nuclear power
Coalition ‘must not sign a blank cheque’ for wind farms and nuclear Telegraph UK 23 July 12, British households cannot afford a “blank cheque” for wind farms and nuclear under the Coalition’s energy reforms, Consumer Focus has warned ”
….Last night, Scottish ministers added their criticism with serious concerns that the reforms will “subsidise nuclear at the expense of renewable energy”.
Fergus Ewing, the Scottish energy minister, argued that wind farm companies could go abroad, rather than investing in Britain.
“As Tim Yeo has said, it is too important for the UK Government to mess up,” he said…
.. Dr Cable said the cost of building offshore wind farms would only need to fall by a quarter to make them competitive with traditional forms of power generation……..
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/journalists/rowena-mason/9421745/Coalition-must-not-sign-a-blank-cheque-for-wind-farms-and-nuclear.html
UK’s “Contracts For Difference” a sneaky way for taxpayer to fund new nuclear reactors
overt Government support for nuclear power could fall foul of EU state aid rules…..
it [ the European Union] may take a dim view of subsidies for nuclear.
“widespread perception that [Electricity Market Reform], and specifically CfDs, are a fig leaf over support for new nuclear”..
Energy reforms would herald a power vacuum Complex energy reform “is a fig leaf over support for new nuclear”, the Energy Select Committee finds – but ministers may still end up with no nuclear to show for it. The Telegraph, By Emily Gosden 23 Jul 2012 The Energy Select Committee pulls few punches in its assessment of the draft Energy Bill on Monday…..
The report dissects the fiendishly complicated legislation, highlighting a litany of design faults.
But it also offers a diagnosis as to why ministers have produced such complex and flawed policy: because they have designed it to accommodate the awkward demands of new nuclear.
The cornerstone of the reforms is the proposal to establish a “Feed-in Tariff with a Contract for Difference (CfD)” – a mouthful of a name that belies a simple concept. Continue reading
Japan’s ruling party ‘fracturing’ over nuclear power
Newspapers reported on Friday that the government had picked Shunichi Tanaka, 67, an expert in radiation physics and a former deputy head of the Cabinet Office’s Atomic Energy Commission, to head the new safety regulator.
some saying he represented Japan’s “nuclear village” — a nexus of politicians, utilities and regulators that experts say was a major factor in the failure to avert the Fukushima disaster. …..
Ex-Japan PM joins anti-nuclear demo outside PM’s office
* Ex-PM Hatoyama at anti-nuclear rally bad news for PM Noda
* Efforts to pick new atomic safety commission members snags after media leak
* Nuclear energy becoming bigger part of political debate (Recasts with ex-PM Hatoyama joining anti-nuclear demo near)
By Mari Saito and Tetsushi Kajimoto TOKYO, July 20 (Reuters) – In a rare move by a former Japanese prime minister, Yukio Hatoyama joined a boisterous anti-nuclear demonstration outside his old office on Friday, a fresh sign that the ruling party he once led is fracturing over energy and other policies. Continue reading
India’s farmers opposing nuclear power, and politicians taking up their fight
Nuclear power or not? Leaders fight it out (Haryana Newsletter) India Daily News, Chandigarh, July 20 — Leaders of all political hues in Haryana are fighting a nuclear war these days. The leaders have gone ballistic with their positioning over the issue of setting up a nuclear power plant in southwest Haryana. Continue reading
Dispute over UK plan for underground nuclear waste bunker
Kent and Shepway councils in Romney Marsh nuclear waste row, BBC News 19 July 12 The facility would have nuclear waste underground with research facilities at ground level Two council leaders have clashed over a report opposing plans for a nuclear waste facility on the Romney Marsh. The report, co-authored by Kent County Council leader Paul Carter, has been criticised by Shepway council leader Robert Bliss as emotive and inaccurate.
Mr Carter said he believed the report, which said the facility would blight the area, was factually correct but Mr Bliss said it was a knee-jerk reaction.
Earlier, Kent County Council voted to “totally oppose” the facility. The area is already the site of Dungeness nuclear power station, where Dungeness A is being commissioned and Dungeness B is due to stop generating power in 2018 or 2023…….
Public consultation On Thursday, Kent County Council voted to oppose the establishment ofa nuclear research and development facility in the county. It also agreed that if Shepway council decided to progress the proposal further, Kent council should review whether or not to hold acounty-wide referendum…
The facility would place nuclear waste in secure containers underground in vaults and tunnels, and at ground level, buildings would house research, office, transport and other facilities. The Shepway consultation is asking people whether it should find out more information about a possible facility on the Marsh. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-18917732
Japan’s government on shaky ground as it promotes nuclear power
In another development that could fan public concerns about nuclear safety, Trade and industry minister Yukio Edano said the government would review seismological data for nuclear plants to assess whether any are built on active fault lines.
He was responding to media reports that a review by the nuclear watchdog indicated Hokuriku Electric Power Co’s Shika station northwest of Tokyo sits atop a faultline……
Nuclear issue puts increasing pressure on Japan government By Linda Sieg, additional reporting by Osamu Tsukimori and Risa Maeda TOKYO Jul 18, 2012 (Reuters) – Japan’s government came under fire on Tuesday over its handling of public hearings on nuclear energy policy, threatening to dent already sagging support for the 
ruling party ahead of an election many expect to be this year.
The latest furor follows Monday’s massive rally in Tokyo against nuclear power in the wake of the Fukushima disaster, an issue now so contentious that lawmakers and analysts say it could trump taxes as the focus of lower house elections, which must be held by September 2013 but could come sooner.
“This gives the impression that they haven’t learned anything,” Continue reading
Japan’s ruling party risks election defeat, due to anti nuclear feeling
Nuclear issue puts increasing pressure on Japan government By Linda Sieg TOKYO Jul 17, 2012 (Reuters) – Japan’s government came under fire on Tuesday over its handling of public hearings on nuclear energy policy, threatening to dent already sagging support for the ruling party ahead of an election many expect to be this year.
The latest furor follows Monday’s massive rally in Tokyo against nuclear power in the wake of the Fukushima disaster, an issue now so contentious that lawmakers and analysts say it could trump taxes as the focus of lower house elections, which must be held by September 2013 but could come sooner. Continue reading
USA exempting uranium mining on federal lands from environmental reviews
Republicans push through mining deregulation bill http://www.nuclearfreeplanet.org/articles/republicans-push-through-mining-deregulation-bill.html 7-13-2012 Joined by only 22 Democrats, Republicans successfully pushed through a bill allowing uranium mining on federal lands to be exempted from “formal environmental reviews. Also included in the exemption would be copper, silver, and gold. Rep. Ed Markey (Dem-MA) accused the Republicans of “actually appear[ing] to be trying to usher in a new stone age,” saying the bill was “a pretext for gutting environmental protections relating to virtually all mining operations” and “a GOP giveaway game show here on the House floor.”
Rep. Rush Holt, Democrat- NJ joined Ed Markey in saying: “It has almost nothing to do with national strategic critical minerals production… Make no mistake, this is a giveaway… It is free mining, no royalties, no protection of public interest, exemption from royalty payments, near exemption from environmental regulations, near exemption from legal enforcement of the protections.”
LARRY MARGASAK (AP) l Seattle Times l 12 Juy 2012
Republicans pushed a bill through the House Thursday that allows the government to exempt gold, copper, silver and uranium mining on federal land from formal environmental reviews…
Canada’s govt landing tax-payers with unnecessary nuclear power costs
Greens want Ontario nuclear costs reviewed BY JONATHAN JENKINS Toronto Sun, JULY 12, 2012 TORONTO – Ontario’s Green Party is asking for an independent review of all nuclear costs in Ontario.
“Protecting our pocketbooks from nuclear cost overruns is clearly not a priority for the McGuinty government,” Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner said in a news release.
“Every nuclear project in Ontario’s history has gone over budget. It’s an irresponsible waste of our money to pay $26 million for the nuclear industry to study their own costs.”….
Ontario suspended plans to build the two new reactors in 2009 after costs estimate from three companies — Westinghouse, Candu and Areva — came in far above what the government had been expecting.
But now that Bentley is restarting the process by paying Westinghouse and Candu to submit estimates, New Democrat energy critic Peter Tabuns called the expense “just crazy”.
“Giving people tens of millions of dollars just to prepare a bid on a contract, I just don’t think is reasonable,” Tabuns said. “OPG is a big sophisticated organization with its own staff. They can do their own analysis.”
Ontario now has a surplus of electrical generation and running what it has is very expensive, Tabuns said. Building more nuclear now — even if it’s just to replace aging units at Pickering — risks blowing the budget.
“Why would we go back to a mid-twentieth century technology?” he said.“Whatever they put forward (on cost), double it. If they’re saying $10 to $14 billion, then it’s probably going to be $20 to $30 billion.” http://www.torontosun.com/2012/07/12/greens-want-ontario-nuclear-costs-reviewed
Nuclear power licensing and relicensing at a dead end in USA
opposition groups are saying that they will push hard to require site-specific evaluations, which could add years to any licensing or re-licensing process.
Nuclear Waste Issue Searing American Landscape Forbes, 11 July 12, Nuclear waste possibly ranks as that industry’s top quagmire: Nuclear plant operators are supposed to store their spent fuel onsite until it is properly cooled and at which point, it is supposed to go into a permanent burial facility. The problem is that such an eternal resting spot has never come to pass.
The dilemma has gotten even more complex now that a federal appeals court ruled last month that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission did not properly do its job when it previously told those same nuclear operators that they could extend their onsite storage from 30 years to 60 years . With such a triumphant court decision in their hands, environmental and citizen groups pounced: They subsequently asked the U.S. Court of Appeals in the District of Columbia to stop issuing any nuclear construction or operating licenses until the NRC does its job.
“It’s hard to see how federal and state officials can justify putting more taxpayers or customer money at risk on new reactor projects until this situation is resolved,” says Former NRC Commissioner Peter Bradford, who has lent his support to the 22 groups, called CleanEnergy.org , who filed this petition before the court. Continue reading
Nuclear referendum for Iran? – call from former Interior Minister
Iran’s former interior minister calls for a nuclear referendum http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/iran-blog/2012/jul/11/iran-abdollah-nouri-calls-for-nuclear-referendum?newsfeed=true
Abdollah Nouri has called on the Iranian regime to hold a referendum over the fate of its nuclear programme. A former Iranian interior minister, Abdollah Nouri, has called on the leaders of the Islamic republic to hold a referendum over the fate of the country’s nuclear programme.
As economic sanctions begin to take their toll and the threat of war looms, Nouri said that “the disadvantages” of the nuclear programme meant that it should be left to people to find a way out of the current stalemate. Continue reading
Report points to earthquake as cause of Fukushima nuclear catastrophe
The 641-page report criticized Tepco as being too quick to dismiss earthquake damage as a cause of the fuel meltdowns at three of the plant’s six reactors, which overheated when the site lost power.
Inquiry Declares Fukushima Crisis a Man-Made Disaster,
NYT, By HIROKO TABUCHI, July 5, 2012 TOKYO — The nuclear accident at Fukushima was a preventable disaster rooted in government-industry collusion and the worst conformist conventions of Japanese culture, a parliamentary inquiry concluded Thursday. Kyodo News, via Associated Press
The report, released by the Fukushima Nuclear Accident Independent Investigation Commission, challenged some of the main story lines that the government and the operator of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant have put forward. Most notably, the report said the plant’s crucial cooling systems might have been damaged in the earthquake on
March 11, 2011, not only in the ensuing tsunami.
That possibility raises doubts about the safety of all the quake-prone country’s nuclear plants just as they begin to restart after a pause ordered in the wake of the Fukushima crisis…… Continue reading
Japanese govt caving in to “nuclear village”, but nuclear future uncertain
Many experts, though, say the nuclear interests are unlikely to win the longer-term battle given the hidden costs of atomic power exposed by Fukushima and a new set of forces pushing for a bigger role for renewable sources of energy such as solar power.
“They (the nuclear interests) are fighting with their backs to the wall”
Reactor restarts, but Japan’s energy policy in flux The Asahi Shimbun, July 04, 2012 Buffeted by industry worries about high electricity costs on one side and public safety fears about nuclear power on the other, Japan’s leaders are still struggling to craft a coherent energy policy more than a year after the Fukushima disaster.
Critics say Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, whose top priority is raising the sales tax to curb bulging public debt, is caving in to Japan’s “nuclear village” — a powerful nexus of utilities,
bureaucrats and businesses — by restarting the first of Japan’s 50 reactors to come back on line since the crisis. Continue reading
Opposition in UK Labour Party to Trident nuclear submarine programme
Labour AM Mark Drakeford opposes Trident fleet in Wales BBC News Wales, 4 July 12, First Minister Carwyn Jones has been rebuked by a Labour backbencher after suggesting the UK’s nuclear submarine fleet would be welcome in Wales.
Cardiff West AM Mark Drakeford said he was “utterly opposed” to the siting of nuclear missiles in Wales.
It comes after Mr Jones raised the prospect of the Trident weapons system leaving its Scottish base and coming to Milford Haven….
.. Mark Drakeford was proud to align himself with the thousands of people “within my own party and beyond” who called for an immediate decommissioning of the Trident nuclear programme…. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-18707465
1 This Month
23-25 October – on Zoom – World BEYOND War’s annual global conferenc
Shut down the radiation-damaged Heysham nuclear reactors now
To see nuclear-related stories in greater depth and intensity – go to https://nuclearinformation.wordpress.com
Say No to NASA’s Reckless Nuclear Reactor on the Moon
Say No to NASA’s Reckless Nuclear Reactor on the Moon
-
Archives
- October 2026 (190)
- September 2026 (339)
- August 2026 (330)
- July 2026 (355)
- June 2026 (287)
- May 2026 (306)
- April 2026 (356)
- March 2026 (251)
- February 2026 (267)
- January 2026 (308)
- December 2025 (358)
- November 2025 (359)
-
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
