WNN Daily: In other news: 10/23/2025

In other news Norwegian nuclear project developer Norsk Kjernekraft and retail and logistics consulting firm Relog AS have entered into a letter of intent to explore cooperation around co-location of industry, logistics and small modular nuclear power plants, as well as opportunities for power purchase agreements for electricity, process heat and surplus heat. The companies will now begin joint land use planning and facilitation for major industrial players with a need for large amounts of clean and stable power. This includes assessment of relevant locations, coordinated infrastructure for electricity and heat, and opportunities for circular utilisation of surplus heat in industrial parks. South Korea’s Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said the country will soon begin talks with the USA on revising their bilateral nuclear energy pact to gain more flexibility in used fuel reprocessing and uranium enrichment for civilian energy use, Yonhap reported. He made the remarks in a radio interview, referring to the so-called '123 Agreement', under which Korea is allowed very limited used fuel reprocessing and uranium enrichment below 20%, only with US consent. "We operate 26 commercial nuclear reactors. There's no other country with this level of nuclear energy capacity that relies entirely on imported fuel," Cho said during the interview with MBC Radio. He said Seoul has "strongly" called for the need to enrich uranium and reprocess used nuclear fuel based on the industrial standpoint. "That has been accepted, and we plan to begin negotiations soon," he said. The European Council has given its approval for Switzerland to join EU programmes, such as Horizon Europe, Euratom Research and Training, ITER/Fusion for Energy, Digital Europe, Erasmus+, as well as EU4Health. This agreement regarding Switzerland's association to EU programmes is part of a broader package of bilateral agreements negotiated between the EU and the Swiss Confederation in 2024. It is the first agreement of the package that will be signed and retroactively implemented as of the beginning of this year. The conclusion of the agreement regarding Switzerland's participation in EU programmes is foreseen as part of the wider package only if Switzerland will complete its procedures necessary for the entry into force of the package by the end of 2028. David Peattie, the UK Nuclear Decommissioning Authority's long-serving CEO, has informed the Board that he will step down in March 2027, after completing what will be ten years in charge of the organisation. The NDA said it has appointed Russell Reynolds Associates to perform a full competitive market search for the new CEO and expects to be able to announce Peattie's replacement in time to allow a comprehensive handover process. The appointment will be made by the Board of the NDA, with the approval of the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, in consultation with Scottish Ministers.