UK nuclear leaders look beyond Hinkley
The UK needs new nuclear power and there are projects beyond Hinkley Point C that will also ensure the country meets future demand for this affordable, low-carbon baseload source of electricity, a parliamentary committee heard yesterday.http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-UK-nuclear-leaders-look-beyond-Hinkley-24031601.html

ANS Nuclear Cafe Update: Low-Enriched Uranium Nuclear Thermal Propulsion: Propelling Humans to Mars

Low-Enriched Uranium Nuclear Thermal Propulsion: Propelling Humans to Mars

By ansnuclearcafe on Mar 24, 2016 10:51 am

by Vishal Patel NASA is developing capabilities of sending people to Mars in the 2030s under the “Journey To Mars” initiative. This plan has public and congressional support but many of the Continue Reading →
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2017 ANS Congressional Fellow – Be a Nuclear Policy Game-Changer

By ansnuclearcafe on Mar 17, 2016 12:33 pm

by Benjamin Reinke, 2016 ANS Congressional Fellow I applied to be the Glenn T. Seaborg American Nuclear Society Congressional Fellow because of the opportunity to learn first-hand how policy decisions Continue Reading →
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Rosatom Begins Loading Nuclear Fuel Into Most Powerful Nuclear Reactor

We're About to Witness a Major Development in Safe Nuclear Power

Is Nuclear Power A Renewable Or A Sustainable Energy Source? - Forbes

Brussels bombings: Terror group 'were planning to attack nuclear power station', surveillance suggests | Europe | News | The Independent

Post-Fukushima safety updates made at Spain’s nuclear power stations | Olive Press News Spain

Nuclear Power: Is Smaller Better? SMRs to the Rescue.

San Onofre and Steam Generator Design

http://atomicpowerreview.blogspot.com/2012/04/san-onofre-and-steam-generator-design.html

Fukushima Update 3/24/16

Fukushima Update 3/24/16 –

Muon detection to be used in unit #2 later this month… Kansai Electric’s chief is blasted for comments concerning the Takahama injunction… Japan presses China to lift Fukushima-based import bans… Tepco apologizes to Niigata Prefecture for delaying meltdown announcement… The new “311 Thyroid Cancer Family Group”… Numerous Fukushima evacuees complain of deteriorated health… Shikoku Electric will seek a July restart for Ikata unit #3.

http://www.hiroshimasyndrome.com/fukushima-accident-updates.html

NRC Seeks Comment On Lowering Fees - News - Nuclear Power News - Nuclear Street - Nuclear Power Plant News, Jobs, and Careers

Progress continues at Vogtle nuclear expansion

As Pilgrim plant nears closure, concerns rise over future of the site - The Boston Globe

Do Nuclear Plant Leaks Endanger Drinking Water? : Discovery News

How China needs to improve its legal framework on nuclear security | Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

V.C. Summer Nuclear Station Prepares Emergency | wltx.com

Closing Pilgrim nuke plant won't be easy, experts say - News - The Enterprise, Brockton, MA - Brockton, MA

NRC suggests TVA discouraging Watts Bar employees from reporting safety concerns | News, Weather, Sports, Breaking News | WTVC

Email Conn. energy committee to hold hearing on nuclear energy's profitability

Conn. energy committee to hold hearing on nuclear energy's profitability

A public hearing to discuss methods for boosting nuclear power's profitability in Connecticut will be held by the state legislature's Energy and Technology Committee today. Millstone nuclear plant owner Dominion Resources showed interest in a hearing amid economic struggles for US nuclear plants in deregulated markets. The plant's operating licenses expire in 2035 and 2045, and without Millstone's contributions, Connecticut's carbon emissions would increase by 27%, according to a state assessment.

CTMirror.org (Connecticut) (3/23) http://ctmirror.org/2016/03/23/nuclear-powers-future-in-connecticut-is-on-the-table/

Haley to feds: Stop sending plutonium to SC

S.C. governor asks Energy Dept. to stop plutonium shipment to SRS

South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley has asked Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz to keep a Japanese plutonium shipment from arriving at the Savannah River Site. In a letter to Moniz, Haley told him to either stop or reroute the shipment, which contains 331 kilograms of plutonium.

The Post and Courier (Charleston, S.C.) (free registration)/The Associated Press
http://www.postandcourier.com/article/20160323/PC1603/160329767/1031/haley-to-feds-stop-sending-plutonium-to-sc

NRC Blog Update: A Chilling Effect is Not Cool

A Chilling Effect is Not Cool

by Moderator

Roger Hannah
Senior Public Affairs Officer
Region II

The NRC Region II office issued a “chilling effect” letter to the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Watts Bar nuclear plant this week, but what exactly does that mean?

The “chilling” has nothing to do with weather, but rather refers to a workplace environment where employees may be hesitant to raise safety concerns for fear of retaliation or because previously raised concerns were not adequately addressed.

In the Watts Bar case and several others before it, the NRC identified situations where some employees told the NRC they might be reluctant to talk to their supervisors, managers or even the NRC about safety issues because they were afraid of potential effects on their jobs. At Watts Bar, these concerns arose in the operations department, but the NRC takes those concerns very seriously whether they are isolated or more widespread.

When the NRC issues a “chilling effect” letter to a nuclear plant or any other licensed facility, it is designed to ensure that those organizations are taking appropriate actions to foster a workplace environment that encourages workers at all levels to raise safety concerns without the fear of retaliation and management to promptly and effectively address the concerns.

The NRC met with TVA officials March 22 to discuss the work environment concerns and the letter issued the following day simply puts into writing the expectations that the NRC has for TVA to address the concerns at the Watts Bar plant.

TVA officials are being asked to provide a plan that describes how work environment issues at the Watts Bar plant will be addressed and then attend another public meeting to discuss both that plan and how the NRC will monitor and inspect any corrective actions.

The NRC is confident that most workers at the Watts Bar plant and throughout the nuclear industry feel safe in raising safety concerns within their own organizations or directly to the NRC. That ability is an important supplement to the NRC inspection program in ensuring the safety of the facilities the agency regulates.

Any attempt to influence that ability will not be tolerated by the NRC and there are other similar letters in the past showing just how uncool the NRC finds any workplace chilling effect.

Moderator | March 24, 2016 at 2:30 pm | Tags: NRC, nuclear power plant, safety issues, Tennessee Valley Authority, Watts Bar | Categories: Operating Reactors | URL: http://wp.me/p1fSSY-1OZ

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U.S. Nuclear Energy Industry Has A Clean Bill Of Health And Says Its Plants Deserve A Life Extension

http://www.forbes.com/sites/kensilverstein/2016/03/23/nuclear-energy-industry-has-a-clean-bill-of-health-and-says-its-plants-deserve-a-life-extension/#4e09fdd027c3

Wednesday, March 23, 2016

What Is the Future of Nuclear Power?

New Chemistries Found for Liquid Batteries

Posted: 22 Mar 2016 11:00 PM PDT

Liquid metal batteries, invented by MIT professor Donald Sadoway and his students a decade ago, are a promising candidate for making renewable energy more practical. The batteries are in the process of being commercialized by a Cambridge-based startup company, Ambri.read more
http://www.theenergycollective.com/energyatmit/2324517/new-chemistries-found-liquid-batteries

U.S. Nuclear Energy Industry Has A Clean Bill Of Health And Says Its Plants Deserve A Life Extension - Forbes

Positive assessment for Swedish encapsulation plant

Positive assessment for Swedish encapsulation plant
The Swedish nuclear regulator has said it believes the country's radioactive waste management company can meet all the safety and radiation protection requirements for its planned used nuclear fuel encapsulation plant next to the Clab interim storage facility in Oskarshamn. http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/WR-Positive-assessment-for-Swedish-encapsulation-plant-2303165.html

Hinkley Point C will 'categorically' go ahead, with FID in May

Hinkley Point C will 'categorically' go ahead, with FID in May
Vincent de Rivaz, the CEO of EDF Energy, said today that the Hinkley Point C project will "clearly and categorically" go ahead. Giving evidence to the UK parliament's Energy and Climate Change Committee, de Rivaz confirmed that, according to the French economy minister, the repeatedly postponed final investment decision on the project to build two EPR units at the site in Somerset, England would finally be made "by early May". He would not himself give a specific date and said the decision would be made "very soon".http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NN-Hinkley-Point-C-will-categorically-go-ahead-with-FID-in-May-23031601.html

Nuclear growth revealed in China's new Five-Year Plan

Nuclear growth revealed in China's new Five-Year Plan
China's operating nuclear generating capacity will double over the next five years under the country's latest Five-Year Plan. The plan also calls for the preparation for construction of inland nuclear power plants and work on a reprocessing plant to start by 2020.http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NP-Nuclear-plans-revealed-in-Chinas-new-Five-Year-Plan-2303166.html

BREAKING: DC PSC approves Exelon-Pepco merger

http://www.utilitydive.com/news/breaking-dc-psc-approves-exelon-pepco-merger/416185/

Should the UK pull plug on Hinkley Point nuclear power station? | New Scientist

Xi heads for US nuclear summit - The Standard

The nuclear industry: a small revolution - BBC News

China's state nuclear energy giant completes deal with Malaysian firm to buy clean energy assets - China.org.cn

Nuclear power’s future in Connecticut is on the table | The CT Mirror

Real Consent for Nuclear Waste Management Starts with a Free Market

South Africa picks two new-build sites; Global nuclear growth to outpace energy demand

http://analysis.nuclearenergyinsider.com/south-africa-picks-two-new-build-sites-global-nuclear-growth-outpace-energy-demand?utm_campaign=NEI%2023MAR16%20Newsletter%20Subject%20Line%20A.htm&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua

US one-step license gains rely on comprehensive build plan

Mar 17, 2016

The ability to secure all necessary licenses before starting construction of new US nuclear reactors is the primary benefit of the Nuclear Regulatory Committee’s (NRC) Part 52 regulation and early design finalization is key to avoiding delays.

http://analysis.nuclearenergyinsider.com/us-one-step-license-gains-rely-comprehensive-build-plan?utm_campaign=NEI%2023MAR16%20Newsletter%20Subject%20Line%20A.htm&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua

Sweden's plant closures to hike skills demand from 2017

http://analysis.nuclearenergyinsider.com/swedens-plant-closures-hike-skills-demand-2017?utm_campaign=NEI%2023MAR16%20Newsletter%20Subject%20Line%20A.htm&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elqTrackId=caf8076492ee4cbcac188d39ca69e9fc&elq=f7d83d7f19ea4bffa2b6ca2444ad7877&elqaid=16075&elqat=1&elqCampaignId=6956

Attorney named to lead state’s Hanford cleanup regulatory program

Alex Smith most recently was lead environmental attorney for the Port of Seattle
She has worked for the state Attorney General’s Office, including on Hanford regulatory issues

Read more here: http://www.tri-cityherald.com/news/local/hanford/article67331632.html#storylink=cpy

http://www.tri-cityherald.com/news/local/hanford/article67331632.html

Tuesday, March 22, 2016

Madam Secretary Doomsday Clock Episode 3/27

Madam Secretary

Doomsday Clock Episode this Sunday, March 27th

The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists is delighted to announce the hit CBS television series, Madam Secretary, is airing a special episode on Sunday, March 27th, that features the Bulletin and its Doomsday Clock.

For those of you unfamiliar with the show, Téa Leoni plays Elizabeth McCord, the recently appointed Secretary of State who takes the job after the suspicious death of her predecessor. McCord is a former CIA analyst, having spent 20 years with the agency, and is highly valued by the President (Keith Carradine) for her in-depth knowledge of the Middle East, if not for her impatience with protocol.

The episode, titled “On the Clock,” is based on the premise that negotiations between India and Pakistan are not going well, prompting the Bulletin's Science and Security Board to consider moving the Clock closer to midnight. The President asks Madam Secretary to intervene with the Science and Security Board, as he believes his administration can end the standoff between the two countries.

The show is certain to generate questions about the Bulletin and the Clock--so be sure to watch. Better yet, host a viewing party with people who are interested in the issues we cover. The show usually airs at 8 p.m. EDT/7 p.m. Central, but check your local listings for show times. You can also stream the full episode at any time by using the CBS All Access app.

To refresh yourself on the Clock’s purpose and storied history, read Doomsday Clockwork by the Bulletin’s senior advisor, Kennette Benedict. And be sure to read the Science and Security Board’s 2016 Doomsday Clock Statement for a reminder on why the Clock is, in the words of graphic designer Michael Bierut, “the most powerful piece of information design of the 20th Century."

UK regulators chart progress of reactor designs

UK regulators chart progress of reactor designs
The UK's Office for Nuclear Regulation, the Environment Agency and Natural Resources Wales have provided an update on their assessment of the two designs currently going through the Generic Design Assessment process - Hitachi-GE's UK Advanced Boiling Water Reactor and the Westinghouse AP1000 reactor design. The update is provided in the regulators' quarterly report - covering November 2015 to January 2016 - which was issued yesterday. http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/RS-UK-regulators-chart-progress-of-reactor-designs-22031601.html

It’'s Not About Being 'Advanced," it is Ongoing Innovation That Will Keep Nuclear Strong

Posted: 22 Mar 2016 02:15 AM PDT

The Nuclear Energy Innovation Capabilities Act was passed to support federal research and development and stimulate private investment in advanced nuclear reactor technologies. This good news about investment in the future made me think about how we use "advanced" and "innovation" in the nuclear industry.read morehttp://www.theenergycollective.com/mzconsulting/2324400/it-s-not-about-being-advanced-it-ongoing-innovation-will-keep-nuclear-strong?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=The+Energy+Collective+%28all+posts%29

At CERAWeek, glimpsing the future of energy

The World's Biggest Oil And Gas Companies - In Photos: World's Biggest Oil Companies - 2015 - Forbes

Grid Defection Isn’t a Reason to Fight Distributed Energy—It’s a Reason to Embrace It | Greentech Media

The Role of Natural Gas in the Energy Transition

Plutonium Pie in the Sky: the Dangerous Delusion of New Nukes

http://www.counterpunch.org/2016/03/22/plutonium-pie-in-the-sky-the-dangerous-delusion-of-new-nukes/

North Korean Leader Says Will Soon Conduct Nuclear, Missile Tests

Editorial: Japan must send powerful message on nuclear disarmament from Hiroshima - The Mainichi

Japan sends 331 kg of weapons grade plutonium to U.S.: Greenpeace | Reuters

Even As America Constructs More Buildings, Electricity Use Continues To Drop

By Greentech Media, Monday, March 21, 2016 10:00 AM

Inside The City Of London's New Landmark Skyscraper

In 2015, U.S. electricity consumption fell for the fifth time in eight years. A couple of years ago, sustainable architect Ed Mazria uncovered a surprising shift in America. Even as developers construct billions of square feet of new buildings across the country in the coming decades, electricity use in the built environment will decline. According to… Keep reading →http://breakingenergy.com/2016/03/21/even-as-america-constructs-more-buildings-electricity-use-continues-to-drop/?utm_campaign=Breaking+Energy+Daily+Digest&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=27544170&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_mUBhlVjhOPF3otAE2GdmFO8PeUZfGrE6igVUA1RyBEmQ5XZD3WHiMANrhPjv-wvjG9FqBJNulL5LAebDbTsK7H_dhUw&_hsmi=27544170

Jordan Cove LNG Setback

By Stephen Davis, William Flynn, Paul Greening, Vera Neinast, Gabriel Procaccini | Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, Monday, March 21, 2016 4:00 PM

In a move that surprised some industry observers, on March 11, 2016, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued an order that denied Jordan Cove Energy Project, L.P.’s application under Section 3 of the Natural Gas Act.http://breakingenergy.com/2016/03/21/jordan-cove-lng-setback/?utm_campaign=Breaking+Energy+Daily+Digest&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=27544170&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_8yg1qpqFq6oKV_-OF2wPxZsPqC6PUHmgvnoYHJCUCqQ-kA4jVubFYaUBMz71G71-xQ_9w_e2Rcx9LZmexOx6oWK5E8Q&_hsmi=27544170

U.S. Energy Secretary Moniz And Chinese Atomic Energy Authority Open New Nuclear Security Training Facility

By U.S. Department of Energy, Monday, March 21, 2016 5:00 PM

BEIJING, CHINA – Today, U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz, accompanied by senior officials from the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (DOE/NNSA), the Department of Defense, and a host of international VIPs, participated with the China Atomic Energy Authority (CAEA) to commission China’s new nuclear security Center of Excellence (COE). The COE will address China’s… Keep reading →http://breakingenergy.com/2016/03/21/u-s-energy-secretary-moniz-and-chinese-atomic-energy-authority-open-new-nuclear-security-training-facility/?utm_campaign=Breaking+Energy+Daily+Digest&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=27544170&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_cOzQOycwqqbJhAbmphKQWTs_TFQG7rSeT-stBmDiUpK4vZWsSbVl-R3N5PP_eDHdAyeBMObLrvQ17BvGyzZ9WdtXY_A&_hsmi=27544170

NRC guidelines won’t stifle innovation

At the recent RIC conference, Stephen Burns stated that current NRC guidelines won’t stifle innovation during the implementation of new advanced reactor technologies – a contentious issue within the industry.
To demonstrate why they believe their licensing roadmap will help rather than hinder advanced reactor progress, the NRC will share an exclusive presentation on the topic at the International SMR and Advanced Reactor Summit (14-15 April, Atlanta GA).
I know you missed the deadline for discounted passes to the summit – However, I’ve managed to keep a few aside for those that missed the cut off – If you’re interested you can secure yours here using discount code EXT200
Take a look at who you’ll join at the Summit:

Licensing Director, Next Generation Reactors – Southern Nuclear
CCO – NuScale Power
Vice President, Supply Chain – NuScale Power
President – X-Energy
CEO – UAMPS
Vice President, Nuclear Oversight – Bruce Power
General Manager – CNNC New Energy Company
Senior Manager, Small Modular Reactors – TVA
Vice President, Project Advancement, New Plants & Major Projects – Westinghouse
Director of Nuclear Power Department – CNNC
Chief Engineer of SMR – China Nuclear Power Technology Research Institute
Head of the Advanced Energy Branch – China Nuclear Power Technology Research Institute
Head, Research and Development – Fortum

Please let me know if you have any questions.
Thanks,
John
John Furness
Senior Industry Analyst
Nuclear Energy Insider
+44 (0)207 375 7528
JFurness@nuclearenergyinsider.com

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