Protestors want the licence from Natural Resources Wales (NRW) which permitted the dredging to be scrapped, amid worries the mud could be contaminated from discharges from Hinkley. In the assembly on Wednesday, Cardiff North AM Julie Morgan asked why the dumping site was chosen “when it’s only two kilometres from the shore”, and what the benefits to south Wales were. ……..
Russia and USA will talk about extending New START nuclear weapons treaty
US and Russia to discuss nuclear weapons treaty extension in October https://www.ft.com/content/b26d62fe-c0a1-11e8-95b1-d36dfef1b89a, Henry Foy in Moscow
Russia and the US will hold talks on a potential extension to the New START nuclear weapons treaty in Geneva in October, a Russian official said on Tuesday. The future of bilateral treaties that govern the use of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles is one of the most critical issues in US-Russia relations. Experts have warned that the recent breakdown in relations between Washington and Moscow could jeopardise longstanding agreements on so-called ‘strategic stability’ that were designed to prevent nuclear armageddon.
New START, a 2010 agreement that limits the number of nuclear warheads held by both countries, expires in February 2021. Separately, both capitals have accused the other of breaching the 1987 INF Treaty, which limits the use of long-range missiles. “It is absolutely realistic to reach an agreement on an extension [to New START], if there is political will on the part of the American side. There are readiness from the Russian side,” said Vladimir Yermakov, director of the department of non-proliferation and arms control at the Russian foreign ministry. “We have given suggestions on how to do this, and in a couple of weeks we will meet in Geneva within the framework of a bilateral advisory commission,” he added, in comments reported by local newswires.
The US and Russia possess 13,300 nuclear warheads between them, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, 92 per cent of the world’s stockpile. New START’s terms allow for a five-year extension, and experts have suggested that writing a whole new agreement would not be possible before its expiry. Regarding the INF Treaty, Mr Yermakov said Russia was “ready to discuss any issues relating to the treaty with our American partners, in any format.” Mr Yermakov added that there was “not a very big possibility” of Russian signing any brand new arms control agreements in the next few years.
Despite huge delays and cost overruns Britain’s nuclear weapons consortium paid itself £70m of dividends
Sunday Times 23rd Sept 2018 , Aldermaston, The consortium that runs Britain’s nuclear weapons factory paid itself
£70m of dividends last year despite huge delays and cost overruns on a key
project. AWE Management paid the dividends to its shareholders — the
giants Serco, Jacobs and Lockheed Martin — which have a long-term
contract to run the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE).
AWE, which develops and builds the nuclear warheads that arm the navy’s Trident submarine
fleet, came under fire from the government’s spending watchdog in May.
The National Audit Office said an upgrade to AWE’s warhead assembly
facility in Berkshire was six years late and costs had spiralled from
£734m in 2011 to £1.8bn.
AWE has also been at loggerheads with the
nuclear safety watchdog, which, in July, prosecuted the company over an
incident last year in which an electrician was injured. At a court hearing
last week, AWE admitted failing to ensure the safety of its staff. It is
due to be sentenced in November.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/business/navy-nuke-maker-awe-pays-70m-dividend-lvthpcwkj
Protest at Faslane, Scotland, against nuclear weapons
The National 23rd Sept 2018 ,SUNSHINE and a rainbow reflected the positive vibes at the Nae Nukes
Anywhere’ peaceful protest march from the peace camp in Faslane
yesterday, led by Scottish makar Jackie Kay. More 600 people from around
the world and of all ages gathered at Trident’s military base at the
gates of HMNB Clyde to urge governments around the world to ban nuclear
weapons.
http://www.thenational.scot/news/16897005.more-than-600-anti-nuclear-campaigners-stage-peace-walk-at-faslane/
Suggestions that Europe may develop its own nuclear weapons
Express 23rd Sept 2018 THE European Union may try to adopt its own independent nuclear deterrent
following the apparent breakdown of its relationship with Donald Trump,
experts warned last night. It follows comments by French president Emmanuel
Macron that the EU must be in a position to guarantee its own territorial
security, amid fears that the US has become “Europe-weary” over its
Nato commitment.
https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1021456/eu-nuclear-power-security-brexit-politics-uk-us-france
French film docuementary – “Nuclear power – the end of a myth”
Public Senat 22nd Sept 2018 By 2028, 34 of the 58 reactors will be celebrating their fortieth
anniversary, the maximum operating age set during the construction of the
park. EDF over-indebted does not have the means to replace these reactors
at the end of their life.
This film tells how France, by political choice,
became totally dependent on nuclear energy until it got into a dangerous
impasse. This film also shows that, at the same time as the aging of
nuclear power plants, several strategic dams at EDF are showing some
worrying signs of weakness.
Who were the players in this nuclear power
strategy? How was it imposed behind the scenes of the State, what were the
key moments? What are the real reasons and risks today for extending the
life of the fleet in operation? A rigorous investigation at the heart of
the French nuclear machine with the testimonies of the various actors of
the sector.
https://www.publicsenat.fr/emission/documentaires/nucleaire-la-fin-d-un-mythe-132557
Liberation 21st Sept 2018, [Machine Translation] The utopia of French nuclear energy dismantled, from
the “Messmer plan” to the EPR. Public Senate broadcasts this Saturday night
“Nuclear, the end of a myth”, a new docu supported on the flaws of the atom
industry. A useful light at a time when the government must decide on the
future of its reactors. The demolition of the French nuclear “model” and
its national narrative has become a popular subject. After the Big Lie seen
on Arte (who attacked the taboo of an attack on power plants) and Impasse
broadcast by France 5 (which told how the damn shipyard EPR reactor is
“sinking” EDF), here is Nuclear, the end of a myth, that we can discover
this Saturday at 9 pm on Public Senate.
https://www.liberation.fr/france/2018/09/21/l-utopie-du-nucleaire-francais-demantelee-du-plan-messmer-a-l-epr_1680417
Theresa May: Iran continues to uphold commitment to nuclear pact
The Hill, BY BRETT SAMUELS – 09/23/18 British Prime Minister Theresa May said Iran is holding up its end of the nuclear pact that the U.S. withdrew from earlier this year.
“We believe that that should stay in place, and others involved in putting that deal together believe that it should stay in place,” May said in an interview aired Sunday on CBS’s “Face the Nation.”……..
Tensions between the U.S. and Iran have been heightened in the months since the Trump administration withdrew from the Obama-era Iran nuclear deal, which offered Tehran sanctions relief in exchange for abandoning its nuclear program. Trump had decried the pact as the “worst deal ever.”
The U.S. has since reimposed some of the sanctions lifted in the deal, potentially crippling the Iranian economy.
Other signatories of the 2015 agreement — including the United Kingdom, France, Germany, the European Union, Russia and Iran — have pledged to remain committed to the deal.
The U.S. has suggested countries that continue to do business with Iran, such as the United Kingdom, could face sanctions. https://thehill.com/homenews/sunday-talk-shows/407978-theresa-may-iran-continues-to-uphold-commitment-to-nuclear-pact
French court orders EDF to release risk analysis about Hinkley nuclear project. It’s not too late to stop it.
N2NP 19th Sept 2018 A court in Paris has ordered French utility EDF to 
release a risk analysis
report to the group’s works council (CEE) concerning its Hinkley Point C
nuclear project. The appeals court in Paris said the firm must communicate
the report within a month and must consult the CEE regarding the project
within two months.
In 2016, EDF refused to release all documents required
by the council for it to be able to issue its advice on the project,
triggering CEE’s legal action. The CEE say EDF failure to give elected
representatives of the staff objective, precise and complete information on
the technical and financial issues raised by the Hinkley project meant they
had not been able “to give a reasoned opinion on this project“.
Commenting on the news, Steve Thomas Emeritus Professor of Energy Policy at
Greenwich University and author of ‘Time to Cancel Hinkley?’ said:
“Some senior EDF management and some EDF trade unions have long been
concerned about EDF’s participation in the Hinkley Point C project.
The 3-year old report the EDF Central Works Council (CCE) has won access to
will show that EDF is well aware of these risks. The continuing delays and
cost overruns (more than 3 times over budget and 8 years late) at
Hinkley’s reference plant, Flamanville, significantly worse than when the
report was written, illustrate graphically the scale of the risk.
The Works Council see Hinkley as a financially risky project that will divert EDF’s
scarce finances away from the strategically more important task of
upgrading and life-extending EDF’s fleet of 58 reactors, many of which
are at or near the end of the 40-year design life.”
Stop Hinkley spokesperson, Roy Pumfrey says: “Even the long standing nuclear advocate,
former International Energy Agency boss, Nobuaki Tanaka, says nuclear power
can’t compete with renewables. He says it’s ‘ridiculously
expensive’ and ‘utterly uncompetitive’ Electricity consumers would
almost certainly still be able to make savings if the project were halted
now and the south-west were given the chance to develop sustainable energy
industries. Full construction start is still a year or more away so not too
late to stop it.”
http://www.no2nuclearpower.org.uk/news/campaign-update/paris-court-ruling-on-hinkley-point-c-risks/
UK’s fleet of nuclear submarines: infrastructure supporting it is no longer “fit for purpose”
‘Ticking time bomb!’ UK warning as nuclear bases ‘NOT FIT for purpose’https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1020963/uk-nuclear-submarines-ministry-of-defence-MoD
THE INFRASTRUCTURE for supporting the Royal Navy’s fleet of nuclear submarines is no longer “fit for purpose”, MPs have warned. Sep 21, 2018 The Commons Public Accounts Committee said past decisions to delay maintenance at the Ministry of Defence’s (MoD) 13 nuclear sites around the UK had created a “ticking time bomb”.
The warning came after the National Audit Office disclosed earlier this year that the MoD’s “Nuclear Enterprise” programme was facing a £2.9 billion “affordability gap”.
The committee chair Meg Hillier said that with the MoD already facing “challenges” over the delivery of its new aircraft carriers and a potential £20 billion shortfall in its equipment programme, there were “serious questions” over its ability to meet its national security commitments.
Over the next 10 years, the MoD is expected to spend £51 billion on the Nuclear Enterprise – maintaining and replacing the submarine fleet, including the Vanguard submarines which carry the UK’s Trident nuclear deterrent…..
he MoD had deferred work on dismantling old submarines which had been taken out of service on “affordability grounds” and there was now a backlog of 20 vessels waiting to be disposed of, including nine which still contained nuclear fuel.
To date, the UK has never completely disposed of an old nuclear submarine and while work has begun on the first, it is not due to be finished until the mid-2020s.
The committee said work on de-fuelling the next submarine was due to begin around the same time, and that the disposals programme was expected to last “at least a couple of decades”.
Ms Hillier said: “I am particularly concerned that the infrastructure available to support the Nuclear Enterprise is not fit for purpose.
“The MoD admits that while it has previously put off dismantling submarines on grounds of cost, this is no longer acceptable on grounds of safety and reputation. The MoD needs to get on top of this quickly.”
“I’ll fight tooth and nail” to salvage Moorside nuclear power project – says NuGen chief
NuGen chief vows to “fight tooth and nail” to salvage Moorside nuclear power project, News and Star , 21 Sept 18, Tom Samson makes impassioned pledge at the second Cumbria Nuclear Conference The boss of NuGen has vowed to “fight tooth and nail” to salvage the £15 billion Moorside nuclear power station in an impassioned speech to industry leaders gathered in Cumbria.Tom Samson, chief executive of the company set to develop the plant in West Cumbria, also told around 150 delegates at the second Cumbria Nuclear Conference at Carlisle Racecourse on Friday, that he was fully behind using the Regulated Asset Base (RAB) model to fund the “transformational” project.
In his first public address since NuGen made more than 70 staff redundant because of delays to a deal between current owners Toshiba and prospective buyers Kepco, he warned that the threat of winding up the company was “very real”.
With Toshiba’s exit from NuGen definite, Mr Samson stressed it was crunch time for a project that has the potential to create thousands of jobs in Cumbria and generate around seven per cent of the UK’s energy needs.
“My commitment to Cumbria is that I will fight tooth and nail to find a solution, and indeed a sustainable solution, we can depend upon with real determination to avoid a wind up of NuGen,” he said at the conference, hosted by Carlisle MP John Stevenson. “The deal with Kepco may still come to fruition, but we cannot just wait for them to make a decision. It is essential that this project (Moorside) goes ahead and we therefore have to consider alternative ways forward.”
Kepco is understood to have a deal for NuGen on the table but will not sign on the dotted line until it has undertaken a study in to the risks and profitability of applying RAB model to finance Moorside, which allows government regulators to ensure stable returns and finance through government support.
Delays to the deal led Toshiba to strip Kepco of “preferred bidder” status in August. Toshiba is now understood to be in talks with a number of other investors including Brookfield Asset Management, which bought Westinghouse from Toshiba at the beginning of the year for $4.6 billion.
But Mr Samson expressed his support for deploying the RAB model to finance NuGen, although he was keen to stress no firm decisions had been made on whether it would be used.
“I am convinced that the model which is now being proposed by the Government could provide NuGen with a viable path forward which puts NuGen in control of its own future,” he said……….
A recent report from the NIC recommended delivering just one more nuclear power station after Hinkley Point C – namely the Horizon Nuclear Power project at Wylfa Newydd – before pausing for around 10 years to gather evidence on how competitive renewable energy and battery storage projects are in comparison.
Mr Samson said NuGen was “deeply shocked” at the suggestion, which could further damage efforts to progress Moorside, and accused the NIC of failing to recognise the complexity of new nuclear projects and their vital contribution to providing a stable source of energy……….
The event – organised by John Stevenson MP to encourage greater collaboration in the nuclear sector – was sponsored by WYG, UCLan, NuGen and the Centre of Nuclear Excellence. http://www.newsandstar.co.uk/news/business/NuGen-chief-vows-to-fight-tooth-and-nail-to-salvage-Moorside-nuclear-power-project-df430793-5e25-42dc-b1ea-ff67886b4f06-ds
Engie warns on profit following Belgian nuclear outages
Engie warns on profit following Belgian nuclear outages, Bate Felix
- Engie recurring net seen at low end of forecast
- * Belgian reactor outages extended over concrete problems
- * Shares recover following the profit warning (Adds Engie statement on earnings)
- By Bate Felix PARIS, Sept 21 (Reuters) – French gas and power group Engie warned on Friday that the extended outages at its Belgian nuclear plants would push its 2018 net recurring income to the low end of its 2.45 billion-2.65 billion euros ($2.9 billion-$3.1 billion) forecast range.
It said the longer outages would result in a shortfall of around 250 million euros in core earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) and net recurring income……….
It said the longer outages would result in a shortfall of around 250 million euros in core earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) and net recurring income.
……..Engie said earlier that following the discovery of problems with the concrete in some of the nuclear plants operated by its Belgian unit Electrabel, it had decided to prolong the outages at its Tihange 2 and 3 reactors.
Tihange 2 will now restart on June 1, 2019 instead of Oct. 31, 2018 while Tihange 3 will restart on March 2, 2019 instead of on Sept. 30, 2018.
Belgium’s nuclear power regulator said this week it had detected concrete degradation in two bunkers adjoining Electrabel reactor buildings……..https://www.reuters.com/article/belgium-nuclearpower/update-1-engie-extends-outages-belgiums-tihange-nuclear-reactors-idUSL8N1W72O4
Britain’s Nuclear Decommissioning Authority partnering with Japan Atomic Energy Agency
Whitehaven News 20th Sept 2018 , The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority has joined forces with the Japan
Atomic Energy Agency to share expertise in nuclear decommissioning and
radioactive waste management. The NDA – which is responsible for cleaning
up and decommissioning 17 sites in the UK including Sellafield in Cumbria
– has signed an agreement that will see skills, knowledge, research,
information and technology exchanged with the JAEA, Japan’s research and
development institute for nuclear energy.
JAEA’s work includes undertaking research and development work to support the decommissioning
and environmental restoration of TEPCO’s stricken Fukushima Daiichi
Nuclear Power station. It is also aiding the decommissioning of the Monju
fast breeder reactor and the Tokai Reprocessing Plant.
http://www.whitehavennews.co.uk/news/business/NDA-joins-forces-with-Japan-Atomic-Energy-Agency-98721037-4777-4322-a8fc-22b18d0c979e-ds
Scottish peace campaigners pressing big financial institutions to divest from nuclear weapons
The National 20th Sept 2018 ,PEACE campaigners are urging Scots to force the hand of the country’s biggest institutions in a war against nuclear weapons as a bombshell report
is launched. With data drawn from annual results, official statements and
freedom of information reports, the paper reveals the extent to which major
Scottish bodies help fund the making of nuclear weapons.
Billed as a way to help “eliminate” the big-money devices, the document has been produced by
the Scottish Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) in conjunction with
similar organisations. It calls on bank customers, students and pension
holders to press major institutions into divesting their funds from
companies involved in the manufacture of nuclear weapons.
These include Royal Bank of Scotland and the Scottish Local Government Pension Scheme
(SLGPS), the largest fund of its kind in the country. It also claims that
success could help sink Trident, arguing: “If we can persuade Scottish
financial institutions to divest from nuclear weapons producers, this will
incentivise those companies to end their involvement with Trident and other
nuclear weapons programmes.”
http://www.thenational.scot/news/16889880.scots-urged-to-put-pressure-on-institutions-funding-nuclear-arms/
UK Government delayed scrapping potentially unsafe nuclear submarines in bid to cut costs
Independent 21st Sept 2018 Government delayed scrapping potentially unsafe nuclear submarines in bid
to cut costs, MPs told. Influential Commons committee tells Ministry of
Defence to put a stop to postponements after expert admits possible ‘safety
issue’. The government has delayed scrapping potentially unsafe nuclear
submarines because of concerns over costs, a new report from an influential
committee of MPs has revealed. 20 disused submarines are currently awaiting
disposal, according to the Ministry of Defence (MoD), including nine that
still contain nuclear fuel. But despite admitting to potential safety
risks, the government will only begin dismantling the next vessel in the
mid-2020s, while the total work needed to scrap the entire 20 submarines
will not be completed until at least 2045.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/trident-uk-nuclear-submarines-government-cuts-pac-ministry-defence-a8547856.html
Five Out of 7 Nuclear Reactors in Belgium Halted – National Regulator
https://sputniknews.com/europe/201809201068199461-belgium-nuclear-reactors/BRUSSELS (Sputnik) – Five out of seven reactors of the two Belgian nuclear power stations have been stopped, the press service of the Federal Agency for Nuclear Control (AFCN) confirmed to Sputnik Thursday.
“Five out of seven reactors have been stopped, the necessary technical work is being carried out,” the press service said.
Rectors 1 and 2 at Doel have been stopped over cooling system leak.
READ MORE: Belgian Nuclear Plant Test Reveals ‘Abnormal’ Findings, Raises Safety Concerns
The AFCN said on Wednesday that the analysis of the concrete was being carried out at Doel 4 and Tihange 2, after the initial checks found that it was getting old.In July, specialists discovered the degradation of the concrete quality at Tihange 3, while previously similar problems were found at Doel 3. The latter has since been repaired and restarted.
The AFCN specialist declined to comment on the potential rise of electricity prices in the upcoming winter due to power deficit. The AFCN representative stressed that the regulator’s specialization was the security. Belgian Minister of Energy Marie-Christine Marghem said earlier in September that there would be no strategic reserve of electricity for the upcoming winter as the interior production and import possibilities would be enough.
The two nuclear power stations have a total capacity close to 6,000 megawatts and cover about 50 percent of the electricity used in Belgium, according to the plants’ operator Engie Electrabel.
The Belgian government is planning to shut down all of the reactors by 2025.
UK: Labour parliamentarians raise concerns about Nuclear plant mud dumping
Nuclear plant mud dumping worries raised by Labour AMs , BBC News, 19 September 2018
Two senior Labour AMs have raised concerns in the Senedd about the dumping of mud from a nuclear plant site into the sea near Cardiff.
Julie Morgan and Jane Hutt – both close to leadership frontrunner Mark Drakeford – said constituents had safety worries about dredging 300,000 tonnes of mud from Hinkley Point.
Dumping began last week. AMs were told the mud poses no risk to human health.
Campaigners have called for more tests, and are seeking an injunction.
Ms Morgan and Ms Hutt quizzed Rural Affairs Secretary Lesley Griffiths following a topical question raised by independent AM Neil McEvoy.
The project to build the new Hinkley Point C nuclear power station in Somerset includes dredging mud and sediment from Bristol Channel near the sites of the decommissioned Hinkley Point A and B nuclear plants, and disposing of it just over a mile out to sea from Cardiff Bay.
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