France deliberately exposed soldiers to nuclear radiation
French soldiers used as ‘nuclear guinea pigs’ The Age MICHEL MOUTOT February 17, 2010 – France used soldiers as guinea pigs in nuclear tests in the 1960s, deliberately exposing them to radiation from atomic blasts to test the effects, according to a report revealed on Tuesday.
The secret military report, obtained by AFP, said that between 1960 and 1966 France sent troops onto Algerian desert test sites “to study the physiological and psychological effects caused on humans by an atomic weapon.” Continue reading
Is AREVA losing faith in the ‘nuclear renaissance’ ?
Areva Switching From Nuclear Power To Solar ? The Oil Drum by Big Gav February 14, 2010
French energy company Areva (best known for its nuclear power business) has purchased solar thermal power company Ausra – yet another example of a promising Australian technology company ending up with foreign ownership.
One possible positive interpretation of the news is that Areva are losing faith in the oft-predicted but unrealised “nuclear renaissance” and now see the real future growth opportunities in large scale solar power, with nuclear power (at best) a legacy business……………. Continue reading
AREVA’s deceptive message about ‘clean’ nuclear energy
AREVA’s Clean Energy Quiz gets it wrong – Nuclear Reaction 12 Feb 2010 On its US blog, French nuclear giant AREVA has a ‘Clean Energy Quiz’. It really is quite something. It manages to undermine wind, solar and other truly clean and renewable energy sources in favour of giving nuclear a great big boost.
Here we go again with nuclear energy being called ‘clean’. If AREVA PR people think nuclear is clean we’d hate to see their houses. Imagine the shocking state of their kitchens if nuclear is their idea of cleanliness. Remind us never to go for dinner at an AREVA spin doctor’s house.
In an interview elsewhere on its blog, AREVA’s CEO ‘Atomic’ Anne Lauvergeon insists ‘nuclear power isn’t THE solution’. She says nuclear is just part of the ideal energy portfolio but the way AREVA regards wind and solar in the likes of its quiz, that’s like someone telling you they love you while punching you in the face.
With nuclear power failing financially, AREVA moves into solar
Areva gets deeper into renewables with Ausra purchase the energy collective, by Tyler Hamilton on 02/08/2010 France’s Areva SA is known mostly as a designer of light-water nuclear reactors, builder of transmission and distribution systems, and a miner of uranium, so the announcement today that it has purchased 100 per cent of concentrated solar power company Ausra Inc. came as a surprise. Continue reading
AREVA’s nuclear reactor safety features now too costly to compete with Korea’s nukes
It was speculated that those expensive features may have cost the company the UAE contract, and Areva has considered scaling back some of those additions for future designs.
Where Is Nuclear Power Really Heading?A Look at Obama’s Call for New Nuclear and the Reactors that Might Be Built by solveclimate Dave Levitan – Feb 5th, 2010
“…….The cost issues surrounding safety have already come up internationally. The United Arab Emirates awarded a high-profile contract for a new plant to a South Korean company late in 2009, after the French company Areva had been positioned as the front-runner.
The Areva EPR reactor has some advanced safety features including a “core catcher” room that could help prevent compromised nuclear fuel from escaping the reactor, as well as an enforced shell that could theoretically withstand an airplane impact. Continue reading
French bank pulls out of Bulgaria’s nuclear power plant
France’s BNP Paribas Quits Bulgaria Belene N-Plant Nuclear Reaction 4 Feb 2010 BNP Paribas SA, France’s largest bank by market value, who was hired by the previous Socialist government to help fund the construction of Belene nuclear power plant at the Danube river town, has ditched the project…. Continue reading
Doubts about AREVA and the future of France’s nuclear power empire
Areva reshuffles ops to stave off split-up PARIS, Jan 28 (Reuters) – French nuclear reactor maker Areva (CEPFi.PA) announced a reorganisation of its businesses on Thursday, in a move aimed to shore up its credentials as an integrated nuclear power provider that cannot be split apart.
The embattled state-owned company said it was reshuffling operations to improve synergies and customer satisfaction.
Areva has recently come under fire for losing a multi-billion euro contract to build nuclear reactors in Abu Dhabi in part because it did not tailor its offer to meet local needs.
The company has also struggled to finish a project to build next generation nuclear reactors in Finland and is embroiled in legal proceedings with its partner there over delays and cost overruns……….President Nicolas Sarkozy has commissioned Francois Roussely, the former head of EDF (EDF.PA), to produce an analysis on the future of the French nuclear industry. The report is due by the end of April. (Reporting by Nina Sovich; Editing by Jon Loades-Carter)…http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKLDE60R0QQ20100128
Greenpeace blocks nuclear waste shipment in France
Activists block nuclear shipment in France Google News (AFP) – 26 Jan 2010 CHERBOURG, France — Greenpeace activists said Monday they were blocking a train transporting nuclear waste to the French port of Cherbourg from where it was to be shipped to Russia.Four activists who had chained themselves to the railway line near the harbour were removed early Monday morning by police but more activists were blocking the line at a different location, they said. Continue reading
There’s money in nuclear waste, (never mind the danger)
A French state-controlled company, Areva, is now the world’s largest processor
of nuclear waste and is keen to secure a bigger share as countries such as China and India expand their nuclear activities rapidly.
Where there’s nuclear muck there’s a growing opportunity for brass TIMESONLINE Robin Pagnamenta: January 21, 2010
“…………Only a handful of countries have the expertise and technology for nuclear reprocessing, in which spent nuclear fuel rods from power stations are chopped up and boiled in acid to extract uranium and plutonium for reuse in a reactor. The by-product is a concentrated form of vitrified nuclear waste that is as nasty as it sounds. Continue reading
French govt intent on promoting nuclear industry
French PM Stesses Importance Of State Role In Nuclear Sector THE WALL STREET JOURNAL By A.H. Mooradian and William Horobin, Dow Jones Newswires JANUARY 20, 2010 PARIS (Dow Jones)–French Prime Minister Francois Fillon Wednesday said the French state plans to continue playing a major role in the country’s nuclear industry, after meeting with the heads of two energy firms.
Fillion met with Henri Proglio, chief executive of Electricte de France SA (EDF.FR), which is one of the world’s largest operators of nuclear power plants, and Anne Lauvergeon, CEO of Areva SA (CEI.FR), the state-owned French nuclear engineering group.
French PM Stesses Importance Of State Role In Nuclear Sector – WSJ.com
Sarkozy focused on promoting France’s nuclear sales
President Nicolas Sarkozy is hoping to use France’s nuclear expertise as a platform to project the country’s political and economic influence around the world
Areva and EDF spat shows nuclear tensions FT.com By Peggy Hollinger: January 19 2010 There has always been some sniping between EDF and Areva, France’s two state-owned nuclear champions…..
Yet there was a degree of hostility in the latest round of guerrilla warfare that was surprising even to the most hardened observers of the two companies. Continue reading
France using OECD in promotion for their troubled nuclear industry
many countries are clearly unhappy to see the international organisation linked to what could clearly be interpreted as a public relations exercise on the part of the French to promote their energy and nuclear champions.
French PR vexes OECD FD is South Korea’s weakness FDI.com By Christian Oliver in Seoul January 19 2010 “…..Foreign investors are very clear why South Korea is punching beneath its weight. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and FDI is South Korea’s weakness “…. Continue reading
France has always been secretive about nuclear power costs
it is hard to say how successful the French were. The French national utility, Électricité de France, has never been open about what the plants cost to build.
A Nuclear Critic Draws a Lesson from France’s Success The New York Times January 19, 2010 By MATTHEW L. WALD
A new statistical analysis of an almost-secret topic — what it costs to build nuclear reactors in France — may have some lessons for a “nuclear renaissance” in the United States. Continue reading
France’s nuclear industry: AREVA and EDF locked in dispute
Bitter row throws French nuclear industry into turmoil Times Online January 18, 2010 Adam Sage, Paris
The French nuclear industry is in turmoil as uranium supplies have dried up and the treatment of spent fuel has been blocked amid an increasingly bitter row between the heads of its two main state operators.
EDF, the electricity group that runs 58 reactors in France, said that Areva, the nuclear energy group, had stopped uranium deliveries on January 4 and was refusing to take away spent fuel for reprocessing.
”The transport of combustibles isn’t working at the moment,” Anne Lauvergeon, the chairwoman of Areva, said. Continue reading
France having a “Nuclear De Naissance”, not “Renaissance”
What’s the opposite of a renaissance, do you think? Nuclear Reaction 15 Jan 2010 De naissance, perhaps. We ask because in France, the supposed cradle of the rebirth of the nuclear renaissance, things seem to be sliding backwards rather than striding forwards.
According to the grid operator RTE, electricity generation from the country’s 58 nuclear reactors fell by 6.8% in 2009, marking a ten year low point. This shortfall meant France was a net importer of electricity for 57 days.
President Nicholas Sarkozyâ’s nuclear bandwagon is said to be leading the world. Just where it’s leading us however is more difficult to say. It seems to be travelling in the general direction away from a bright future of clean and secure energy supplies
Nuclear Reaction – A Greenpeace blog about nuclear power: More Atomic Tales: Uranium with juice at… « Your Green Ability
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Shut down the radiation-damaged Heysham nuclear reactors now
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Say No to NASA’s Reckless Nuclear Reactor on the Moon
Say No to NASA’s Reckless Nuclear Reactor on the Moon
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