China’s revolutionary new storage battery for renewable energy
China’s State Grid and BYD Launch World’s Largest Battery Energy Storage Station, Market Watch . ZHANGBEI, China, Dec 30, 2011 (BUSINESS WIRE) — BYD and the State Grid Corporation of China (SGCC) have finished construction on what may be the world’s largest battery energy storage station.
This large utility-scale project, located in Zhangbei, Hebei Province, combines 140 Mega-Watts of renewable energy generation (both wind & solar), 36 Mega-Watt-Hours (MWh) of energy storage and a smart power transmission system. While there are renewable generation systems of this scale in service today, there are no battery systems of this size.
The State Grid system is demonstrating a stable solution for transferring vast amounts of
renewable electricity safely to the grid on an unprecedented scale. Although BYD manufactures 1GW of solar panels annually, their role in this project was primarily providing energy storage batteries in arrays larger than a football field…. This new project with the
State Grid has outpaced other grid projects in China and, though independently designed by SGCC, is part of the national “Golden Sun” program. The first phase investment with 100MW of Wind, 40MW of Solar and 36MWh of Battery is worth over $500M USD (~3.3 Billion RMB). Continue reading
India gets nuclear submarines from Russia
India is currently completing the development of its own Arihant-class nuclear-powered ballistic submarines …The 8,140-tonne vessel can fire a range of torpedoes as well as Granat cruise missiles that can be nuclear-tipped…..
Newspaper reports in India said New Delhi may end up paying as much as $900 million under the terms of the deal.
Russia hands over Nerpa nuclear sub to India (AFP) Khaleej Times, 30 December 2011 MOSCOW — Russia has handed over the nuclear-powered attack submarine Nerpa to India following more than two years of delays, a senior naval official was quoted as saying Friday.
“The signing ceremony happened yesterday at the Bolshoi Kamen ship building facility in the (Far East) Primorye region where the Nerpa is now based,” the official in the naval chief of staff told ITAR-TASS. The report said an Indian crew would sail the Akula II class craft to its home base at the end of January after receiving it on a 10-year lease, in a deal that has angered India’s arch-rival Pakistan…..
India is currently completing the development of its own Arihant-class nuclear-powered ballistic submarines … Continue reading
North Korea developing uranium tipped missiles
North Korea closer to nuclear-tipped missile: US expert Business Recorder DECEMBER 29, 2011 North Korea likely is closer to mounting nuclear warheads on its ballistic missiles than generally reported, possibly only one or two years away, the US Congress’s former top expert on the issue has concluded.
Larry Niksch, who tracked North Korea for the non-partisan US Congressional Research Service for 43 years, concludes in a new paper that the North probably would need as little as one to two years to miniaturise and mount a nuclear warhead atop its medium-range Nodong
missile once it has produced enough highly enriched uranium as the warhead’s core fuel.
A North Korea armed with nuclear-tipped missiles would rattle East Asia and present new policy and military challenges to the United States and its allies….. Its nuclear and missile capabilities are once again in the spotlight as power passes to North Korea’s designated young leader, Kim Jong-un, after the December 17 death of his father, Kim Jong-il.
Pyongyang already may have produced enough highly enriched uranium (HEU) for a warhead or be close to doing so, Niksch and experts such as Siegfried Hecker, the former head of the Los Alamos National Laboratory, said in interviews with Reuters….. http://www.brecorder.com/general-news/single/599/172/1265893/
Japan’s mothers using social media to pursue concerns about radiation
Can Web-savvy activist moms change Japan? Times of India AP | Dec 29, 2011 TOKYO: Japan’s nuclear crisis has turned Mizuho Nakayama into one of a small but growing number of internet-savvy activist moms.
Worried about her 2-year-old son and distrustful of government and TV reports that seemed to play down radiation risks, she scoured the Web for information and started connecting with other mothers through Twitter and Facebook, many using social media for the first time. Continue reading
China continues research on Fukushima radiation in Pacific Ocean
China conducts second radiation monitor in Pacific Ocean By Yu Jianbin (People’s Daily Overseas Edition), December 29, 2011 Edited and translated by People’s Daily Online A marine monitoring team dispatched by China’s State Oceanic Administration accomplished the mission of monitoring radiation in the western Pacific Ocean for the second time, and returned to Xiamen on Dec. 27 aboard the Xiangyanghong 09 scientific exploration ship.
The monitoring team sailed about 6,100 nautical miles in 30 days, and monitored radiation in the air over and water in the western Pacific Ocean as well as radiation-sensitive sea creatures, chemistry and dynamic environments.
This is the second time that China has monitored radiation in international waters in the western Pacific Ocean.
The aim of the mission is to gain a deeper understanding of the impact of Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster on the western Pacific Ocean and China’s marine environment, and to help build a western Pacific marine environmental monitoring and early warning system.
http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/202936/7691886.html
India boosts its nuclear weaponry
India to get Russian nuclear attack sub in days: Report , Economic Times, 28 DEC, 2011,MOSCOW: Indian Navy is set to receive a major boost when the much-awaited Russian ’Nerpa’ nuclear attack submarine would join its fleet “in the next few days” on a 10-year lease worth USD 920 million. …. The Akula-II class submarines are equipped with 28 nuclear-capable cruise missiles with a striking range of 3,000 km. The Indian version is reportedly expected to be armed with the 300-km Club nuclear-capable missiles. ………http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics/nation/india-to-get-russian-nuclear-attack-sub-in-days-report/articleshow/11280048.cms
Australian Senator wants to stop uranium sales to India, on safety concerns
Australian senator slams India’s nuclear sector, Australia network news, 27 Dec 2011 An Australian Greens Senator has said India’s nuclear sector is set to become more irresponsible, and wants Australia to rethink its policy to sell uranium to the country. Senator Scott Ludlum made his comments after India announced plans to replace its independent nuclear regulator with a government-controlled body.
The decision comes just weeks after Australia announced it would begin selling uranium to India’s civilian nuclear program. Senator Ludlum told Connect Asia after Japan’s nuclear disaster in March this year, governments around the world were having second thoughts about how to regulate uranium.
“Because the technology is so unforgiving, and when things go wrong they go so seriously wrong, you need to have an exquisite safety culture to maintain this equipment,” the Western Australian Senator said.
Corruption risk The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board will be replaced with a safety authority answerable to government ministers, which Senator Ludlum said could suffer from government interference. ”On a day to day basis they will actually have the ability, from the prime minister down, to direct the regulator, force it to investigate or not investigate certain kinds of activities and, I think, quite improper use of national interest tests to decide what the regulator should do.
“Not just in India, but everywhere around the world where this technology is used, you need to be completely at arms length and you need have a fiercely independent regulator to stick its nose in wherever it thinks it’s appropriate,” he said.
“The last thing you want is something that’s just a puppet of the top tiers of government and that’s what the Indian movement and Indian officials are telling us is occurring here,” the senator said. http://australianetworknews.com/stories/201112/3398569.htm?desktop
India’s Left parties want to tighten up Nuclear Liability Bill
The initial licence period is five years. But the Left argues that this “either or” provision is aimed at helping the foreign suppliers, and that the nuclear accidents can happen after the initial licence period which can still be the fault of the suppliers.
Trouble for govt on nuclear liability rules Jayanth Jacob, Hindustan Times New Delhi, 
December 28, 2011 In a move that could bring fresh troubles for the government, the Left parties have moved amendments to the rules of the nuclear liability bill that deals with limiting of supplier liability.
The foreign suppliers have been maintaining that Indian liability law is not consistent with international norms owing to the stringent supplier liability of provisions. The amendments moved by the CPI(M) pertain to the rule 24 that deals with supplier liability.
The first amendment is for omitting the words “or the value of the contract itself, whichever is less” that aimed at limiting the compensation. Continue reading
Jan’s govt suggests nationalising Tepco, at least temporarily
Tepco asked to consider temporary state control, BBC News 27 Dec 11 Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco), which operates Japan’s disaster-hit nuclear plant, has been asked to consider temporary state control. Energy minister Yukio Edano suggested it as one possible way to try to strengthen its financial position. Continue reading
Tepco asks Japan’s government for additional 6 billion pounds
Japan‘s biggest utility, known as Tepco, faces costs of trillions of yen for compensation and cleanup, and the Japanese government agreed only two months ago to provide £7bn through a bailout fund. Continue reading
Pakistani and Indian experts co-operate in nuclear weapons safety talks
Pakistan, India Call for Extending Agreement on Preventing Nuclear Accidents Voice of America, December 27th, 2011 Pakistan and India say officials from both sides have called for
extending an agreement on reducing the risk of nuclear accidents relating to their countries’ atomic weapon stockpiles. Pakistani and Indian government experts discussed nuclear confidence-building measures in Islamabad on Tuesday, the second day of a two-day dialogue between the nuclear-armed rivals. The talks are part of a peace process that resumed in February following a two-year break.
In a joint statement, Pakistan and India said the experts agreed to advise their foreign ministries to prolong the existing agreement on preventing nuclear weapon-related accidents by five years. The statement described the talks as “cordial” and “constructive.”
In Monday’s talks, Pakistan proposed that both sides relocate their heavy weaponry at least 30 kilometers away from the Line of Control, a de facto border that divides Pakistani- and Indian-controlled Kashmir. India made no immediate public response to the idea of demilitarizing the Line of Control….. http://blogs.voanews.com/breaking-news/2011/12/27/pakistan-india-call-for-extending-agreement-on-preventing-nuclear-accidents/
New report on the continuing nuclear disaster at Fukushima
Nuclear disaster response failed: report 9 News Dec 26 2011 Yuri Kageyama Japan’s response to the nuclear crisis that followed the March 11 tsunami was confused and riddled with problems, a report revealed on Monday. The response included an erroneous assumption that an emergency cooling system was working and a delay in disclosing dangerous radiation leaks.
The disturbing picture of harried and bumbling workers and government officials scrambling to respond to the problems at Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant was depicted in the report detailing a government investigation……
Sadder still was how the government dallied in relaying information to the public, such as using evasive language to avoid admitting serious meltdowns at the reactors, the report said.
The government also delayed disclosure of radiation data in the area, unnecessarily exposing entire towns to radiation when they could have evacuated, the report found.
The government recommended changes so utilities will respond properly to serious accidents.
It recommended separating the nuclear regulators from the unit that promotes atomic energy, echoing frequent criticism since the disaster, which left 20,000 people dead or missing.
Japan’s nuclear regulators were in the same ministry that promotes the industry, but they will be moved to the environment ministry next year to ensure more independence.
The report acknowledged people were still living in fear of radiation spewed into the air and water, as well as radiation in the food they eat. Thousands have been forced to evacuate and have suffered monetary damage from radiation contamination, it said.
“The nuclear disaster is far from over,” the report said.
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/world/8395190/japan-probe-finds-nuclear-disaster-respons
The continuing human cost of Fukushima’s continuing radiation
Enduring the nuclear winter, Irish Times, 26 Dec 11“……..More than 100,000 people have been displaced due to radiation around Fukushima Prefecture, home to the crippled Daiichi nuclear plant. Those who stay keep children indoors for much of the day. Others, such as single mother Kanako Nishitaka from Fukushima City, have fled in an attempt to find normality in a different part of the country.
“My daughter is smaller and closer to the ground, so she absorbed more radiation,” she says. “They found caesium in her body. I was told it was about the same amount as people exposed to nuclear bomb tests. When I told my son we were moving, he cried his eyes out because he
didn’t want to leave his friends.”
Many doubt the immediate area around the plant will ever again be habitable. The Daiichi plant will become an unwanted monument to Japan’s nuclear ambitions for years to come, while the cost of dismantling its reactors and supporting its victims will haunt future
governments…….” http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/features/2011/1227/1224309514995.html
Stiff opposition in South Korea to new nuclear power plants
New nuclear plants face public backlash, Korea Herald, By Shin Hyon-hee, 27 Dec 11 2011 Civic groups, environmentalists, residents stage protests, voicing safety concerns The government’s plan to install new nuclear reactors in the country’s eastern shore faces stiff opposition from residents, stoking safety concerns in the aftermath of a Japanese disaster.
Last week, the government picked two candidate sites for nuclear power plants –Yeongdeok in North Gyeongsang Province and Samcheok in Gangwon Province. The decision will be finalized by late next year after on-site inspections and environmental surveys.
On Monday, civic groups, religious organizations, environmentalists and residents staged a mass rally in downtown Seoul and the two regions, calling to scrap the country’s atomic energy policy.
“The government’s latest site selection completely neglects a global anti-nuclear trend that has been reigning supreme since the Fukushima meltdown in March,” Green Korea United, one of the country’s major environmental groups, said in a statement. In Samcheok, Gangwon
Province Gov. Choi Moon-soon added fuel to the flame by expressing his regret over the announcement. “It’s hard to understand the government is pushing ahead with its nuclear expansion program at a time when there is no national consensus and public understanding of the safety of the plan,” he said. ..
..Among the imminent issues is the storage of spent radioactive fuel rods that will run of space in 2016. The ministry plans to host a public forum in the first half of next year to discuss how to take care of such obsolete equipment, Hong said….http://www.koreaherald.com/business/Detail.jsp?newsMLId=20111226000732
78% of Japanese do not believe that Fukushima nuclear plant crisis is over
78 percent of poll participants did not accept Noda’s announcement this month of the effective end of the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant,
Japan PM’s public support plunges Channel Asia News 26 December 2011 TOKYO: Support for Japan’s primeminister plunged in December as voters lost faith in his leadership, amid party turmoil and criticism over his handling of the nuclear crisis, a poll said Monday. Continue reading
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