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. ……..
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.
EDF subsidiary NNB Generation Company (HPC) Ltd argued that mud dumping near Cardiff did not need an environmental impact assessment
Wales Online 17th Sept 2018 , Protesters seeking an injunction to stop the dumping of mud from HinkleyPoint nuclear power station off the coast of Cardiff have had their
application adjourned after the energy company behind the dumping admitted
it had given inaccurate information to the High Court.
In documents submitted to the court in Cardiff by NNB Generation Company (HPC) Ltd – a
wholly owned subsidiary of the French energy giant EDF – it was argued
that the dumping did not require an environmental impact assessment (EIA)
under European regulations.
wholly owned subsidiary of the French energy giant EDF – it was argued
that the dumping did not require an environmental impact assessment (EIA)
under European regulations.
However, the company’s barrister James
McClelland told the court that an environmental statement was made by the
company at the time it sought approval for the whole Hinkley Point C power
station in Somerset, the successor to two previous nuclear power stations
on the same site.
McClelland told the court that an environmental statement was made by the
company at the time it sought approval for the whole Hinkley Point C power
station in Somerset, the successor to two previous nuclear power stations
on the same site.
Dozens of peaceful protesters assembled outside Cardiff
Civil Justice Centre before the hearing, not all of whom were able to get
seats in the court room. Opponents of the dumping say they fear radioactive
particles present in the mud could pose a health threat. More than 100,000
people have signed petitions against the dumping.
Civil Justice Centre before the hearing, not all of whom were able to get
seats in the court room. Opponents of the dumping say they fear radioactive
particles present in the mud could pose a health threat. More than 100,000
people have signed petitions against the dumping.
https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/live-updates-protest-held-cardiff-15162790
Big companies including Facebook, Google and Microsoft not supporting EU’s plan for more ambitious climate change goals
Guardian 19th Sept 2018 Companies including Facebook, Google and Microsoft have failed to distance
themselves from a lobby group’s proposal to fight any effort by the EU to
set more ambitious climate change goals. A leaked document shows that
BusinessEurope, Europe’s biggest business lobbying group, will urge members
to oppose any moves by the European Commission to ratchet up the bloc’s
2030 targets for clean energy, carbon cuts and energy efficiency.
The commission is considering whether to set more ambitious goals in November
after a key international science panel report on meeting tougher global
warming targets is published in October, and before a UN climate summit in
December.
But, at meeting in Brussels on Wednesday, BusinessEurope will ask
big companies to agree a “line to take” on the prospect of steeper carbon
cuts. If the commission’s measures have teeth, the group’s “advocacy and
communication strategy” recommends companies agree to fight them. “To
oppose the new increase of ambition, using the usual arguments of global
playing field, we cannot compensate for others, etc,” the document said. If
the commission opts for warm words and a political statement rather than a
material ratcheting up of the targets, the group suggests it should react
by being “rather positive”.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/sep/19/tech-giants-fail-to-distance-from-businesseurope-fight-against-eu-climate-targets
Hypocrisy of UK government on nuclear disarmament
David Lowry’s Blog 18th Sept 2018 , All this week the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog body, the
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has held its annual (62nd)
General Conference in Vienna. On 17 September, the junior Foreign Office
minister Sir Alan Duncan, told the conference “We live in an increasingly
uncertain and dangerous world. We have seen the destabilising consequences
when States pursue nuclear weapons. And we have worked together to prevent
terrorists acquiring nuclear material”.
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has held its annual (62nd)
General Conference in Vienna. On 17 September, the junior Foreign Office
minister Sir Alan Duncan, told the conference “We live in an increasingly
uncertain and dangerous world. We have seen the destabilising consequences
when States pursue nuclear weapons. And we have worked together to prevent
terrorists acquiring nuclear material”.
This statement makes a lot of sense, until it is put in the context of what his own British Government is
doing in wasting £205,000 m (£205 billion) of tax payers’ money of
replacing the Trident nuclear WMD system, which makes the faux concern over
nuclear weapons pure, unadulterated hypocrisy.
doing in wasting £205,000 m (£205 billion) of tax payers’ money of
replacing the Trident nuclear WMD system, which makes the faux concern over
nuclear weapons pure, unadulterated hypocrisy.
To put the scale of this gross hypocrisy in context, Duncan asserted in Vienna that he UK had
“already contributed £4.1 million this year to the Nuclear Security
Fund,” and urged all to “support the Agency’s work to help Member
States implement robust nuclear security regimes.”
“already contributed £4.1 million this year to the Nuclear Security
Fund,” and urged all to “support the Agency’s work to help Member
States implement robust nuclear security regimes.”
This ‘do as we say, not as we do’ policy cuts zero ice with the vast majority of sensible
Governments, who want genuine global nuclear disarmament, not shameful
finger-wagging from countries bristling with deadly nuclear weapons like
the UK.
http://drdavidlowry.blogspot.com/2018/09/atomic-hypocrisy-peaks-in-vienna.html
Governments, who want genuine global nuclear disarmament, not shameful
finger-wagging from countries bristling with deadly nuclear weapons like
the UK.
http://drdavidlowry.blogspot.com/2018/09/atomic-hypocrisy-peaks-in-vienna.html
Brexit has brought Britain to a standstill
Bloomberg 19th Sept 2018 , . “The country—as an
administrative entity—has virtually stopped working.” The energy issue
has been particularly badly hit. “There are the micro-processes of
government that are in turmoil because of the revolving doors of ministers,
and then there’s been the internal party fighting and squabbling, which
is then consuming all of the political oxygen,” says Mary Creagh, a
lawmaker for the opposition Labour Party and chair of Parliament’s
Environment Committee. “It means the normal decision-making of government
is not happening and has not happened for two years.”
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-09-19/brexit-has-brought-britain-to-a-standstill
administrative entity—has virtually stopped working.” The energy issue
has been particularly badly hit. “There are the micro-processes of
government that are in turmoil because of the revolving doors of ministers,
and then there’s been the internal party fighting and squabbling, which
is then consuming all of the political oxygen,” says Mary Creagh, a
lawmaker for the opposition Labour Party and chair of Parliament’s
Environment Committee. “It means the normal decision-making of government
is not happening and has not happened for two years.”
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-09-19/brexit-has-brought-britain-to-a-standstill
EU votes for copyright law that would make internet a ‘tool for control’
MEPs defy warnings from internet pioneers, civil liberties groups and commercial interests, Guardian, Rankinin Brussels, Wed 20 Jun 2018 A European parliament committee has voted for legislation that internet pioneers fear will turn the web into “a tool for surveillance and control”.
French nuclear industry in turmoil, – inadequate welds at Flamanville nuclear reactor
Le Monde 16th Sept 2018 [Machine Translation] Nuclear: In Flamanville, the welds of the discord.The manufacturing difficulties of the French EPR have cruelly recalled the pitfalls that threaten the tricolor nuclear industry: an extremely ambitious initial vision and implementation difficulties with heavy consequences.
At the beginning of the year, problems with essential welds at the Flamanville reactor will lead EDF to re-evaluate the costs and delays of the project. While the group’s management hoped to start in early 2019, it will be necessary to wait until 2020 to see the EPR be connected to the network.
The welding business illustrates bitterly the difficulties of the French nuclear industry, faced with its loss of skills and know-how. EDF has defined this new quality standard for the construction of the EPR and has not been able to enforce it to its own subcontractors In February, EDF discovered problems on thirty-eight welds, on sixty-six of the secondary circuit. This water circuit is the one used to evacuate steam to the turbine. It consists of four loops, associated with four steam
generators.
generators.
As a first step, the group explains that these pipes comply with the regulations but that they should have corresponded to the “high quality” standard, which is more demanding than the regulations in force. Specifically, EDF had defined this new quality standard for the construction of the EPR and was unable to enforce it to its own subcontractors. “Why did we need to create this new standard?”
But things got complicated a few weeks later. The extensive examination of the welds reveals that a large part of them do not comply with the standard required by EDF, or even the regulations required for pressurized nuclear equipment.
As a result, the group has to take back fifty-eight welds, knowing that a single weld represents eight weeks of extra work.
https://www.lemonde.fr/economie/article/2018/09/16/nucleaire-a-flamanville-les-soudures-de-la-discorde_5355892_3234.html
As a result, the group has to take back fifty-eight welds, knowing that a single weld represents eight weeks of extra work.
https://www.lemonde.fr/economie/article/2018/09/16/nucleaire-a-flamanville-les-soudures-de-la-discorde_5355892_3234.html
Financiers desert France’s EPR nuclear power plan for UK’s Hinkley Point C project
Le Monde 16th Sept 2018 [Machine Translation] Can EDF’s finances support such a trajectory? The company’s chief financial officer, Thomas Piquemal, slammed the door in 2015, worried that the UK’s Hinkley Point EPR would weigh heavily on the company. According to him, the need for the nuclear company to finance alone two thirds of the project creates a situation too risky. ”
Who would bet 60% to 70% of its heritage on a technology that we still do not know if it works, while it’s been ten years that we try to build it? “, He launches in front of the deputies in 2016. This is the heart of the problem for EDF: how to finance new reactors? For Hinkley Point, it took considerable resources, even though EDF won a gold contract with the British state: for thirty years, the French group will sell its electricity at a guaranteed rate, twice the current price electricity!
In other words, British consumers will see their bill increase. In fact, most countries that continue to build nuclear power can only do so with a strong commitment from the state and a guaranteed income for private investors.
But the France of 2018 is no longer that of Pierre Messmer and the Commissariat au plan in 1974, when the French nuclear plan was launched. The impossible equation But the atom requires long time. “When we talk about the EPR, we
are talking about an investment over a century. We are in a period in which people want shorter-term returns, even in infrastructure, “says Emmanuel Autier of Bearing Point.
“We are not going to scramble to finance a project that has not yet proved its worth while it is much more profitable and less risky to finance renewable energy,” notes an investment fund manager. Especially since EDF’s current structure, subject to stock market fluctuations, does not encourage long-term commitment. “Finance costs are a
very important part of construction. A listed company can not wear that on its balance sheet in a massive way, “agrees Valérie Faudon, SFEN.
“It will be necessary for the state to play its full role by creating a new regulatory framework,” admits Xavier Ursat. In other words: to sustain the EPR – and make survive EDF – it will be up to the state to guarantee the investments and consumers to bear the burden on their electricity bill.
This is the impossible equation in which EDF is: to survive in its current form, it must.
https://abonnes.lemonde.fr/economie/article/2018/09/16/l-epr-le-cauchemar-d-edf_5355883_3234.html
Les Echos 17th Sept 2018 Nuclear: the amazing schedule for the extension of reactors. The first reactor of the Tricastin plant will stop in June 2019 to start the extension work after 40 years. But ASN will not give its generic opinion on
the subject until the end of 2020.
https://www.lesechos.fr/industrie-services/energie-environnement/0302222113379-nucleaire-letonnant-calendrier-de-la-prolongation-des-reacteurs-2205709.php
Britain’s energy regulator trying to gag whistleblowers
Guardian 17th Sept 2018 Britain’s energy regulator has been fighting to keep secret the claims of
two whistleblowers who independently raised concerns about potentially
serious irregularities in projects worth billions of pounds, the Guardian
can reveal. The two men say Ofgem threatened them with an obscure but
sweeping gagging clause that can lead to criminal prosecutions and possible
jail terms for those who defy it.
https://www.theguardian.com/law/2018/sep/17/ofgem-made-my-life-hell-whistleblowers-say-they-were-threatened-by-regulator
Judge calls for developers to clarify whether Hinkley radioactive mud dumping is covered by an environmental impact assessment (EIA)
BBC 17th Sept 2018 , Developers must clarify whether dumping mud from near a nuclear plant iscovered by an environmental impact assessment (EIA), a judge has said.
Judge Milwyn Jarman said EDF’s evidence was “not accurate on a very
important point” on whether material dredged from the seabed near Hinkley
Point C site in Somerset was included in the EIA. Campaigners want an injunction to halt the dumping that began last week. A High Court hearing
in Cardiff has been adjourned for seven days.
important point” on whether material dredged from the seabed near Hinkley
Point C site in Somerset was included in the EIA. Campaigners want an injunction to halt the dumping that began last week. A High Court hearing
in Cardiff has been adjourned for seven days.
About 300,000 tonnes is to be
dredged from the seabed near the building site and deposited in the Cardiff
Grounds, a mile off the coast of the Welsh capital. Energy firm EDF, which
is behind the £19.6bn plan to build the nuclear plant, argued the mud dump
was addressed in a main environment statement that formed part of the main
planning application for Hinkley Point C and was approved by the UK
Government.
dredged from the seabed near the building site and deposited in the Cardiff
Grounds, a mile off the coast of the Welsh capital. Energy firm EDF, which
is behind the £19.6bn plan to build the nuclear plant, argued the mud dump
was addressed in a main environment statement that formed part of the main
planning application for Hinkley Point C and was approved by the UK
Government.
But the judge said that was not clear from a witness statement
the company had submitted to court. The firm’s barrister James McClelland
accepted the wording could have been made clearer. Legal action is being
brought by the Campaign Against Hinkley Mud Dumping, which includes Super
Furry Animals keyboard player Cian Ciaran. Campaigners asked for a
temporary injunction to be imposed until the next hearing, but the request
was turned down. Neil McEvoy AM said campaigners were planning to organise
a blockade in an effort to halt the dumping. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-45546550
the company had submitted to court. The firm’s barrister James McClelland
accepted the wording could have been made clearer. Legal action is being
brought by the Campaign Against Hinkley Mud Dumping, which includes Super
Furry Animals keyboard player Cian Ciaran. Campaigners asked for a
temporary injunction to be imposed until the next hearing, but the request
was turned down. Neil McEvoy AM said campaigners were planning to organise
a blockade in an effort to halt the dumping. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-45546550
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