Is EDF using Britain’s “windfall tax” as an excuse to get out of uneconomic Hartlepool and Heysham nuclear reactors?
EDF has complained that the British Government’s windfall tax, introduced on 1 January, may mean an early end for operations at Hartlepool & Heysham 1, but the Nuclear Free Local Authorities believe that these could be ‘crocodile tears’ with the tax providing the perfect excuse for the French-state owned company to bow out of running these increasingly unreliable reactors, which are already way past their close-by date.
In his November statement, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt extended the windfall tax to a charge upon the ‘excess profits’ of all energy generators, including nuclear and renewable generators. Many commercial energy businesses generating electricity from fossil fuels, nuclear and renewable technologies have made significantly increased profits as the wholesale energy price has been pegged to the price of gas, which skyrocketed following the outbreak of war in Ukraine.
Hartlepool and Heysham 1 are two of EDF’s five remaining British plants generating electricity from aging
Advanced Gas Cooled Reactors. Whilst they may be called ‘advanced’, the reactors were installed between 1976 and 1988, and all are well past their operational date. The reactors at both plants were off-line for significant periods, both planned and unplanned, for repairs, maintenance and safety checks. Indeed, EDF Energy reported to the International Atomic Energy Agency that Hartlepool 1 was offline 4,767 hours (equivalent to 198 days), Hartlepool 2 3,534 (147 days), Heysham 1, 3,165 (132 days), and Heysham 2 a
whopping 7,122 (297 days).
NFLA Steering Committee Chair, Councillor Lawrence O’Neill believes that EDF’s threat to shut the reactors in 2024 citing the new windfall tax is in fact hollow:
“Before there was even a hint of a UK government windfall tax, EDF Energy had already announced that
after an earlier lifetime extension they intended to close the Hartlepool and Heysham 1 plants on 2024 so this is clearly just scaremongering. “
The NFLA has raised repeatedly with the Office of Nuclear Regulation that the continued safe operation of these reactors is being compromised over time by the degradation and cracking of the graphite core moderators.
Closure will soon in any case be inevitable as these plants become increasingly uneconomic to run. “You can see from the latest operational figures supplied to the international regulator that the reactors at Hartlepool and Heysham are off-line for significant periods, in two cases for well over half the year. So much for nuclear being a source of reliable baseload
power”.
NFLA 3rd Jan 2023
Letter in the Morning Star Exposes Links Between Subsea Coal Mine and Subsea Nuclear Dumping
https://keepcumbriancoalinthehole.wordpress.com/2023/01/02/letter-in-the-morning-star-exposes-links-between-subsea-coal-mine-and-subsea-nuclear-dumping/?fbclid=IwAR0C2qCXmhrxSPHtjbGsYvRneNi62ihh9ipDvaV3q-9zT_7EImsE0LEQFy 0 BY MARIANNEWILDART
The UK Morning Star published this letter on 31st December
Dear Editor,
In response to your recent correspondents, I would say that the proposed coal mine in Cumbria shows that the government is not serious about tackling the climate crisis. Yes, it would provide jobs in the area but a much better answer is to provide jobs in the infrastructure for genuine sustainable energy such as wind turbines and solar panels – according to the Local Government Association that could create 6,000 ‘green’ jobs in Cumbria by 2030. Alok Sharma, who led the UN Conference on Climate Change in Glasgow said:
*85% of coal produced is for export
*Two major UK steel producers have said they won’t use this coal as they are moving to hydrogen
*The government’s own Climate Change Committee has said the mine would increase UK CO2 emissions by 0.4 million tonnes with clear implications for our legally-binding carbon emissions budgets.
The mine will be a backward step in UK climate action – and will damage the UK’s international climate reputation. Once again it would be the government saying to other nations, ‘Do as I say, not as I do’.
And course with this government there is always an ulterior motive. The CEO of the coal mine is Mark Kirkbride, who has now been appointed to the Government Committee on Radioactive Waste Management to advise on the UK Government’s nuclear dump plans. He was the advisor for the hugely damaging seismic blasting which took place in August in the Irish Sea to ‘investigate’ the complex geology for a nuclear dump. This blasting is also likely to have had a disastrous effect on the sea wild life. The area of the Irish sea where the seismic blasting took place overlaps the area of the proposed coal mine. As the Coal Mine Planning Inspector warned in his recommendation to the government stated: the risk of a seismic event cannot be ruled out’. So the CEO of a seismic inducing coal mine near Sellafield is employed as an advisor on radioactive waste burial in a Geological Disposal Facility. So not only will the coal mine produce huge carbon emissions, but it looks as if the deep voids which would come with the coal mining are being sought for a radioactive waste dump with potential earthquakes in the same area.
As France’s nuclear energy sector falters, Britain’s wind and solar power booms
the continued sharp growth of green power in Britain’s electricity mix. Wind farms generated a record 28 per cent of the country’s needs this year, up from 23 per cent last year. Solar generation increased to 5 per cent this year, from essentially zero a decade earlier.
Britain exported more electricity to Europe than ever before this year while wind and solar generation hit all-time highs, according to the first analysis of the year’s power mix. The energy crisis in Europe prompted by
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and safety problems at French nuclear plants resulted in Britain becoming a net exporter of electricity to the Continent for the first time in more than a decade.
Renewable power sources generated in excess of 40 per cent of Britain’s electricity needs for the first
time as both wind and solar output increased, according to the analysis by Imperial College London for Drax Electric Insights and seen by The Times.
Gas-fired power generation also increased, compensating for a sharp drop in imports and helping to supply the rising exports. Soaring gas prices meant power prices were almost twice as high as a year earlier. Iain Staffell, of Imperial College London, lead author of the report, said: “This has been a year like no other for the energy industry.
The public are feeling the pain of high gas prices on their energy bills, even though renewables are
providing the grid with more cheap, green electricity than ever before. The lesson from 2022 is that we need to break our addiction to fossil fuels once and for all if we want lower-cost and more secure energy supplies.”
This reversal was driven by net exports to France, with more than half of the French nuclear fleet forced offline over the summer for maintenance and to repair corrosion and cracking.
Power flows on interconnectors are normally decided by the market, travelling in the direction of the highest
bidder. The analysis also shows the continued sharp growth of green power in Britain’s electricity mix. Wind farms generated a record 28 per cent of the country’s needs this year, up from 23 per cent last year. Solar
generation increased to 5 per cent this year, from essentially zero a decade earlier.
Times 29th Dec 2022
Sunak’s wrongheaded renewables tax risks trashing Britain’s wind and solar ambitions.
DR NINA SKORUPSKA: Sunak’s wrongheaded renewables tax risks trashing
Britain’s wind and solar ambitions. The Government must change course,
otherwise we will see winters even more painful than this one.
Call it what you will – a windfall tax, a clawback, a levy – the fact remains that the
Electricity Generator Levy (EGL), in its current form, is set to cause
irreparable damage to Britain’s green energy industry by stalling
investment. In principle, our sector is certainly not against the
Government’s policy to require generators to help pay for energy bill
support.
However, we would question the wisdom of subjecting the cheaper,
greener renewable power sector to a more punishing tax regime than its oil
and gas counterparts. It is an inexplicable disparity – our sector is key
to tackling the volatile costs of fossil fuels at the heart of rising
energy bills. Treatment should be fair and equitable in relation to the oil
and gas sector.
Telegraph 23rd Dec 2022
Dounreay pushes forward plans to build new 37-metre-high stack at prototype fast breeder reactor.
Dounreay pushes forward plans to build new 37-metre-high stack at reactor.
Dounreay’s operators are looking to clear the way to progress long-delayed
plans to replace the discharge stack at the site’s prototype fast reactor.
Dounreay Site Restoration Limited (DSRL) is seeking Highland Council’s
agreement to approve a design for the system to vent authorised emissions
of gases, including radionuclides. Last year, it awarded a £7 million
contract to US conglomerate Jacobs to carry out the work.
Concrete foundations and a steel framework would support the proposed new 37-metre
high stack which would house a plant room containing an extract fan, filter
units, stack sampling and control panels. The contract involves removal of
the existing vent and the design, manufacturing, testing, installation and
commissioning of its replacement. The new stack is earmarked to go up on
the seaward side of the reactor and be in place by October 2024.
John O Groat Journal 21st Dec 2022
UK tipped to export even more energy to France despite blackout fears.
UK tipped to export even more energy to France despite blackout fears.
France’s nuclear power output has plunged to a 30-year low – and the UK is
expected to continue to part ways with its energy supplies despite shortage
fears this winter.
A nuclear expert has warned that the UK may have to send
more energy across the Channel to help keep the lights on in France. This
is despite fears that Britain could be weeks away from its own shortages
this winter.
France has taken 16 of its 56 nuclear reactors offline due to
corrosion issues, causing nuclear power output levels to plummet in recent
months. Making matters worse, Paris confirmed last week that maintenance
halts at two of Electricite de France SA’s reactors – and that it will last
for an extra four months. It may also have to carry out lengthy repairs at
seven other reactors next year, too.
Under normal circumstances, France is
a net exporter of energy, sending some of this to the UK via
interconnectors. While the exchange of energy from the UK to France has
been happening regularly for a number of months, Dr Paul Dorfman, a nuclear
expert from Sussex University, has warned that the UK could ramp up its
exports to France, despite its own domestic energy issues.
Express 24th Dec 2022
https://www.express.co.uk/news/science/1711900/uk-energy-france-nuclear-blackout-edf
Highland campaigners ‘disturbed and disappointed’ to learn 15 radioactive particles discovered near Dounreay
Campaigners have expressed their disappointment in learning that 15
radioactive particles were discovered near Dounreay earlier this year. The
particles were found between February and March on the Dounreay shoreline
and Sandside beach, with 73% of them being described as “significant”.
Highlands Against Nuclear Transport (HANT) and the Scottish Nuclear Free
Local Authorities (NFLA) claim this information was spread through the
press rather than properly shared at a meeting of the Dounreay Stakeholder
Group. Both groups have joined forces to seek answers from Dounreay bosses
and to dispel “sketchy” and “incomplete” information.
Press & Journal 20th Dec 2022
Trawsfynydd as a nuclear waste dump?
Low levels of radioactive waste could be buried at the site of a former
nuclear power station, under new plans. Magnox, owner of the Trawsfynydd
site in Gwynedd, said it was considering burying some of the waste below
ground and capping it with concrete. The company described the proposal as
“unordinary” and said it was one of two options being looked at.
Anti-nuclear group Cadno said it would cause “serious safety issues” and
wants the waste stored safely above ground. Trawsfynydd stopped generating
electricity in 1991 after operating for 25 years and is in the long process
of being decommissioned.
BBC 23rd Dec 2022
Campaign groups want answers on increase in radioactive particles found onDounreay foreshore.
Highlands Against Nuclear Transport (HANT) and the
Nuclear Free Local Authorities Scottish Forum have written to site managing
director Mark Rouse and Nicole Paterson, the chief executive of the
Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa). The campaigners claim the
information about the particles is “sketchy, incomplete and out-of-date”
and want the Dounreay Stakeholder Group (DSG) and the local and national
press to receive regular reports about their detection and retrieval.
John O’Groat Journal 22nd Dec 2022
Chinese nuclear company still has a stake in UK’s Hinkley Point C project, and approval to build Bradwell project.
Following mounting pressure from Washington, the UK decided to ban Huawei
and other vendors it considered to be a high security risk from its 5G
networks in 2020. In November, after months of prevaricating, the
Government blocked the sale of Newport Wafer Fab, the UK’s largest
semiconductor plant, to Chinese-owned Nexperia.
It also bought the Chinese
state-owned power group CGN out of its stake in the Sizewell C nuclear
energy project in Suffolk. Under a long-standing deal, CGN, which the US
placed on an export blacklist back in 2019 after Washington accused it of
stealing American know-how for military purposes, invested in Hinkley Point
C power station in Somerset; then Sizewell C, which has just been given the
green light; and is still technically due to be the lead investor at
Bradwell-on-Sea in Essex where it is hoping to instal its own design of
reactor.
The Chinese company still retains a stake in Hinkley Point and
received formal approval for Bradwell from the UK’s nuclear regulator in
February. But there is growing scepticism at Westminster that the Chinese
will ever be able to build on the site.
Telegraph 18th Dec 2022
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2022/12/18/how-foreign-states-raided-britains-crown-jewels/
Twice as many people support onshore wind compared to nuclear power, according to UK Government survey.
Renewable energy of all sorts is at
least twice as popular with the British public compared to nuclear power
according to the newly released ‘BEIS Public Opinion Tracker Autumn
2022‘. Solar power was supported or strongly supported by 89% of
respondents, offshore wind by 85% and onshore wind by 79%. This was
compared to only 37% for nuclear power, 25% for fracking and 44% for carbon
capture and storage. The survey recorded that just 29% of people believe
that nuclear energy ‘provides a safe source of energy in the UK’.
100% Renewables 15th Dec 2022
For Heaven’s Sake – Examining the UK’s Militarisation of Space
December 13, 2022, By Dr. David Webb of the Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space
I have been working on behalf of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) with Peter Burt from Dronewars UK on a new joint publication called “For Heaven’s Sake: Examining the UK’s Militarisation of Space”. It was launched in June and looks at the UK’s emerging military space programme and considers the governance, environmental, and ethical issues involved.
The UK’s space programme began in 1952 and the first UK satellite, Ariel 1, was launched in 1962. Black Arrow, a British rocket for launching satellites, was developed during the 1960s and was used for four launches from the Woomera Range Complexin Australia between 1969 and 1971. The final launch was to launch Prospero, the only British satellite to be placed in orbit using a UK rocket in 1971, although the government had by then cancelled the UK space programme. Blue Streak, the UK ballistic missile programme, had been cancelled in 1960andspace projects were considered too expensive to continue. 50 years on and things have changed.
Space is now big business – the commercial space sector has expanded and the cost of launches has decreased. The UK is now treating space as an area of serious interest. The government has also recognised that space is now crucial for military operations. So, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) now has a Space Directorate, which works closely with the UK Space Agency and is responsible for the military space policy and international coordination. UK Space Command, established in April 2021 ,is in charge of the military space programme and is closely linked with US Space Command and US Space Force. While the UK typically frames military developments as being for defensive purposes, they are also capable of offensive use………………………………………………………..
Although many of these launches may be for commercial companies, space use has evolved into a fuzzy military/commercial collaboration and Alexandra Stickings, a space policy and security analyst at the Royal United Services Institute in London, believes that the Shetland and Sutherland spaceports will need military contracts to be viable. She said “I am of the opinion that the proposed spaceports would need the MoD as a customer to survive as well as securing contracts with companies such as Lockheed” and the military will want to diversify their launch capabilities“so the Scottish locations could provide an option for certain future missions.” She also warned that: “There is also a possibility that if these sites become a reality, there will be pressure on the MoD to support them even if the cost is more than other providers.”………………………………..
Although many of these launches may be for commercial companies, space use has evolved into a fuzzy military/commercial collaboration and Alexandra Stickings, a space policy and security analyst at the Royal United Services Institute in London, believes that the Shetland and Sutherland spaceports will need military contracts to be viable. She said
“I am of the opinion that the proposed spaceports would need the MoD as a customer to survive as well as securing contracts with companies such as Lockheed” and the military will want to diversify their launch capabilities“so the Scottish locations could provide an option for certain future missions.” She also warned that: “There is also a possibility that if these sites become a reality, there will be pressure on the MoD to support them even if the cost is more than other providers.”…………………….
…………………… https://safetechinternational.org/for-heavens-sake-examining-the-uks-militarisation-of-space/
Paul Dorfman: Nuclear power is just a slow and expensive distraction.
Despite recent breakthroughs in nuclear fusion, renewables remain the most
important technology for reaching net zero. “Fissile fuel” is back –
or so say the UK’s policy teams and press.
Rishi Sunak and Emmanuel
Macron are about to strike a deal on nuclear cooperation, and recent
editorials across national newspapers all reckon everything in the garden
is nuclear. Where, however, is the evidence for its efficacy?
The British and French governments can sign any deal they like – if key financial
investors don’t take up the remaining 60 per cent of construction costs,
the planned Sizewell C plant in Suffolk is going nowhere. The omens
aren’t good.
Recently Sir Nigel Wilson, group CEO of Legal & General, one
of the UK’s largest real assets firms, told BBC Radio Four: “We are not
big fans of Sizewell C.” Sir David King, the UK’s former chief
scientific adviser and a long-standing nuclear supporter, told LBC that the
plant would be “very difficult to protect from flooding” due to rising
sea levels on the Suffolk coast.
New Statesman 13th Dec 2022
Opinion is split on UK government plan for new nuclear and hydrogen projects
Ministers are considering requiring that all new domestic boilers be
“hydrogen-ready” from 2026, as they announced £100m for nuclear and
hydrogen projects. The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial
Strategy (BEIS) has launched a consultation on improving boiler standards,
and has argued there is a strong case for introducing hydrogen-ready
boilers in the UK from 2026.
The government is examining options to replace
polluting fossil fuel gas in Britain’s energy system and has offered
grants for households to install heat pumps. A ban on gas boilers in new
homes comes into force in 2025, although uncertainty remains over the
timeframe for the phase-out of fossil gas in existing homes.
While hydrogen
is expected to play a significant role in the decarbonisation of heavy
industry and the transport network, opinion is split on the practicality of
using it in Britain’s gas network and the resulting cost to households.
Plans for a pilot to examine the effectiveness of using hydrogen have met
local opposition in Whitby, outside Ellesmere Port, where residents have
expressed concerns over becoming “lab rats”. The consultation, which
closes in late March, will also examine the cost of hydrogen-ready boilers.
“The government needs confidence that consumers will not face a premium
for their purchase,” it said.
Guardian 13th Dec 2022
UK government ‘s announcement was NOT yet a funding decision for Sizewell C nuclear, just an exclusion of China from the project
Steve Thomas: The UK government’s announcement of November 29, 2022 on
funding the Sizewell C nuclear power project was widely reported as a
decision to invest in the plant and to complete the exit of China General
Nuclear (CGN) from the project.3
However, close examination of the press
releases by the Government4 and by EDF5 suggest it was no more than the
long-anticipated buying out of China General Nuclear from the project and
funds to allow the development of the project to the point of a Final
Investment Decision (FID).
The budget set up by EDF and CGN to fund this
phase of the project appears to be spent and new funds were needed if the
project was not to stall. Nevertheless, this announcement has important
implications not only for the Sizewell C project but also for the Hinkley
Point C and Bradwell B projects and for the nuclear stations expected to
follow Sizewell C.
Stop Sizewell C 12th Dec 2022
1 This Month
19 November – Webinar – The Reality of Reprocessing
Time: 11:00 AM Pacific Time (US & Canada) / 2:00 PM Eastern / 7:00 PM UK / 8:00 PM CET
Register for the Zoom Event Here
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
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