Friday, August 3, 2012

Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) – The Next Generation of Nuclear ...

Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) – The Next Generation of Nuclear ...
By casenergy
Whitman that outlines why small modular reactors (SMRs) are the future of nuclear energy innovation. Her piece, “Industry has the power to change,” highlights the economic benefits and jobs that would be generated by SMR development in ...

NRC and Regulatory Capture

http://www.4factorconsulting.com/uncategorized/nrc-and-regulatory-capture

California PUC delays start of investigation into San Onofre shutdown

Financial probe delayed at damaged Cal nuke plant

CBS News - ‎

LOS ANGELES — The head of the California Public Utilities Commission recommended Thursday that the agency delay for several months an investigation into soaring costs tied to the damaged San Onofre nuclear power plant. At issue is who is going to pay ...

San Onofre investigation is postponed

Los Angeles Times

California Public Utilities Commission postpones decision to investigate San Onofre nuclear plant's troubles. As costs of the San Onofre nuclear plant outage continue to mount, the California Public Utilities Commission postponed a decision to open an ...

Calif regulators pushed on San Onofre nuke probe

CBS News -

Calif regulators pushed on San Onofre nuke probe. LOS ANGELES — Consumer and environmental advocates pressured California regulators Thursday to open a probe into soaring costs tied to the damaged San Onofre nuclear power plant. At issue is who ...

LETTER TO COMMUNITY: Sign petition to close down San Onofre nuclear plant

San Diego Gay & Lesbian News -

Eight million people in California will soon be endangered by America's most dangerous nuclear power plant if Southern California Edison power company has its way. The San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS), which sits on the beach between ...

Anti-Nuke Activists Strike Deal With Labor Over San Onofre Outage: Call for ...

San Diego Free Press

Safety Advocates Strike Exceptional Pact with Labor. One of the items approved on the agenda of the California Democratic Party's Executive Board meeting in Anaheim this past weekend was a resolution that calls for an independent design review and ...

CPUC Head Wants Delay of San Onofre Investigation

San Diego Reader (blog) -

Michael Peevey, head of the California Public Utilities Commission, recommended yesterday (Aug. 2) that the agency delay for several months an investigation into billowing costs tied to damage at the San Onofre nuclear power plant, according to the ...

STATE PUC POSTPONES PROBE INTO SAN ONOFRE

U-T San Diego - ‎

State utility regulators on Thursday postponed a proposed investigation into the economic consequences of an extended outage at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station. California Public Utilities Commission Chairman Michael Peevey indicated that ...

San Onofre restart dates? Not quite, Edison says

Power Engineering Magazine - ‎

A year-end restart of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station's idled reactors is not being planned or targeted, the operator of the troubled power plant says, despite dates in public documents appearing to suggest otherwise. The documents, filed with the ...

Tab for ailing California nuke plant hits $165M

Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce (subscription)

LOS ANGELES — The tab for the long-running crisis at the San Onofre nuclear power plant in California has hit at least $165 million, and it would cost $25 million more to get one of the damaged reactors running at reduced power, officials said this week.

EDITORIAL: Not the fault of ratepayers

North County Times - ‎

The mounting costs of diagnosing and perhaps repairing the fairly new generators at the San Onofre nuclear power plant can most charitably be described as sobering. So far, operators of the plant ---- which include Southern California Edison and San Diego ...

Edison International Reports 2Q 2012 Results

Power Engineering Magazine - ‎

Edison International reported second quarter 2012 basic earnings of $0.23 per share, compared to basic earnings of $0.54 per share in the same quarter last year. In a release dated July 31, the Company said that second quarter 2012 core earnings were ...

Advocates Continue To Seek San Onofre Probe

KGTV San Diego -

At issue is who is going to pay a bill that has reached $165 million for repairs, inspections and replacement power. On Thursday, the California Public Utilities Commission postponed voting for the second time on an order requiring Southern California Edison ...

ENERGY: State again delays decision on nuke plant probe

North County Times -

The California Public Utilities Commission has again held off opening its own investigation into the shutdown at San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station. The commission, which controls the purse strings for utility projects in the state, was set to vote Thursday ...

California PUC delays start of investigation into San Onofre shutdown

Platts - ‎

California PUC delays start of investigation into San Onofre shutdown. Los Angeles (Platts)--2Aug2012/553 pm EDT/2153 GMT. The California Public Utilities Commission on Thursday chose to delay opening a probe of the San Onofre nuclear plant outages, ...

Nuclear Winter

Nuclear winter
Financial Times
In a Financial Times interview this week, Jeff Immelt, chief executive of GE, said nuclear power was “really hard” to defend financially, when compared both with gas-fired generation and certain renewables. “At some point, really, economics rule,” he added.

GE chief cools to nuclear prospects

Financial Times - ‎2 hours ago‎

Jeff Immelt, the chief executive of General Electric, revived the debate about the cost of nuclear power this week when he said building reactors was so expensive compared with other forms of energy it had become “really hard” to justify. In an interview with ...

Wind taken out of nuclear power's sails

Financial Times -

It is one thing for a green pressure group to claim nuclear power is too expensive, but quite another when the charge comes from the head of an atomic industry pioneer such as General Electric. GE built some of the world's first commercial atomic reactors in ...

Hearings yet to clarify alternatives to N-power

The Daily Yomiuri - ‎Aug 2, 2012‎

Hearings yet to clarify alternatives to N-power. Takeo Miyazaki and Ryosuke Yamauchi / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writers. While demands to eliminate nuclear power have prevailed at public hearings, the hearings have yet to tackle ways to secure a sufficient ...

http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/0bc5c4be-dd7c-11e1-8be2-00144feab49a.html#axzz22VyJBWkh

Update from NEI Nuclear Notes 8/3

NEI Nuclear Notes:

NEI's Mark Flanagan takes a closer look at the latest Japanese election results and tries to divine what it means for the future of nuclear energy there:

http://neinuclearnotes.blogspot.com/2012/07/reducing-nuclear-power-poses-large.html

Almost 700 million people in India were without power this week, and it's time for us to consider what the lack of reliable electricity means in the developing world:

http://neinuclearnotes.blogspot.com/2012/07/almost-700-million-people-without.html

CNN crafted an entire report on nuclear energy facilities and drought without talking to the people who own and operate the plants. Here's what they missed:

http://neinuclearnotes.blogspot.com/2012/07/cnn-fails-to-provide-context-on-heat.html

Anti-nuclear activists in New Hampshire are launching a film festival about the drawbacks of nuclear energy, but NEI's David Bradish crunched the numbers to show what the presence of Seabrook Station has meant for the state:

http://neinuclearnotes.blogspot.com/2012/08/by-numbers-benefits-of-new-hampshires.html

Australia has long been seen as hostile to nuclear energy, but things may be changing:

http://neinuclearnotes.blogspot.com/2012/08/upside-down-down-under.html

The California Energy Commission released a study on what rising temperatures will mean for the state's electrical grid. If the report is right, John Keeley wonders how the state will adapt without adding new nuclear generating capacity to the grid:

http://neinuclearnotes.blogspot.com/2012/08/can-california-survive-climate-change.html

Keystone Moves North, Where Big Oil Is Losing

Obama may have stopped the U.S. pipeline, but now the fight has shifted to Canada

NEI Commends Sen. Bingaman for Leadership in Tackling Used Fuel Policy

Nuclear Energy Institute FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:202.739.8000
For Release:August 1, 2012

NEI Commends Sen. Bingaman for Leadership in Tackling Used Fuel Policy

WASHINGTON, D.C.—U.S. Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.) today introduced legislation (S. 3469) in support of key recommendations made by the Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future, presented to President Obama in January. The Nuclear Energy Institute’s Alex Flint, senior vice president for governmental affairs, made the following remarks in reaction to the legislation.
“Senator Bingaman is to be commended for giving serious consideration to the recommendations of the Blue Ribbon Commission and the nation’s need to seriously address the issue of safely managing used nuclear fuel. We look forward to reviewing his proposal and to testifying in that regard at the appropriate time.”

Fukushima Updates

Here's the topic summaries of today's Fukushima Updates. Click the link for the full reports.

Angry Fukushima residents want nuclear energy abolished, and they want it now... Many speakers at Wednesday's Fukushima public hearing focused on fear of the impact of radiation on children... Only 22% of the evacuated Fukushima citizens have participated in the prefecture’s study of health effects following 3/11/11... A poll taken by Mainichi Shimbun at July’s public hearings shows that 70% want nuclear energy abolished... Another municipality says it will assist in the disposal of tsunami debris... Ex-Prime Minister Ichiro Ozawa is trying to resurrect his political career using the antinuclear agenda... P.M. Yoshihiko Noda says he will meet with the organizers of the weekly Tokyo antinuclear demonstrations... Several prosecutors have opened criminal probes into the Fukushima Daiichi accident.

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

Y-12 Plant Suspends Nuclear Arms Activities Over Feared Vulnerabilities

A security officer participates in a training exercise at the Y-12 National Security Complex. The Tennessee nuclear materials facility suspended all atomic operations after three antiwar advocates late last week infiltrated its highest security area (B&W Y-12 photo).

The Y-12 National Security Complex in Tennessee has suspended all atomic activities, locked away stores of refined uranium and mandated personnel retraining in response to mounting fears over defensive shortcomings after three antiwar advocates infiltrated the Tennessee nuclear arms site on Saturday, the Knoxville News Sentinel reported on Thursday (see GSN, July 31).

Revisiting Reprocessing in South Korea

by noreply@blogger.com (Dan Yurman)

The U.S. doesn’t want to hear about ithttp://djysrv.blogspot.com/2012/08/revisiting-reprocessing-in-south-korea.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blogspot%2FYiuo+%28Idaho+Samizdat%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

CB&I surprises investors with $3 billion takeover of Shaw

by noreply@blogger.com (Dan Yurman)

Stockholders will receive $46/share, a 72% premium

Chicago Bridge & Iron (NYSE:CBI) agreed to acquire The Shaw Group (NYSE:SHAW) for $3.04 billion in cash and stock on July 30. The surprise move extends CB&I’s growth into the U.S. power generation market particularly nuclear energy. http://djysrv.blogspot.com/2012/08/cb-surprises-investors-with-3-billion.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blogspot%2FYiuo+%28Idaho+Samizdat%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

Brazil pushes back Angra 3 startup to 2012

Brazil pushes back Angra 3 startup to 2016

by noreply@blogger.com (Dan Yurman)

Problems with procurement and finance said to be causes of the delay
http://djysrv.blogspot.com/2012/08/brazil-pushes-back-angra-3-startup-to.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blogspot%2FYiuo+%28Idaho+Samizdat%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

Nuclear Information Goes Mobile

IAEA Nuclear Information System Launches Mobile Version of Web Site

Staff report

The INIS website will redirect to the mobile version when accessed from a mobile device. (Photo Credit: D. Calma/IAEA)

Story Resources

Listen to this story

Experts predict explosive growth in mobile computing in the coming years. On mobiles devices alone, statistics show the number of smartphone users will reach 1 billion by the year 2016. The IAEA's International Nuclear Information System (INIS) is leveraging the increased use of these devices on the go by recently launching a mobile version of its web site, thereby helping it target a new audience.
INIS is operated by the IAEA in collaboration with over 150 members countries. It hosts one of the world's largest collections of published information on the peaceful uses of nuclear science and technology and offers free online access to a unique collection of non-conventional literature. It is a main source of nuclear information and contains over 3.4 million bibliographic records with 440,000 full text documents available online. The information shared on this platform is essential to governments, academic and research institutions and private companies.
"INIS is a main source of nuclear information for many IAEA Member States, and as such, represents a potential target for mobile visitors," Mr Dobrica Savić, Head of IAEA Nuclear Information Section explained. More than 5% of INIS visitors use mobile devices and many users have been requesting better mobile compatibility."
" Our aim is to make the INIS website more accessible and convenient, especially for those who use mobile devices and are often on the go," Mr Savić added." Our visitors are now able to easily explore INIS on a variety of mobile devices. This is of particular relevance as lower costs of phone subscriptions and the removal of technological barriers to mobile computing are expected to create an even wider pool of users who would benefit from accessing INIS information on the go.
The mobile version of the INIS web site has been thoroughly tested on various types of mobile devices, including smartphones and tablets running different operating systems. INIS mobile users will be able to explore the website on the mobile device of their choice and download the information they need. The website will automatically redirect to the mobile version when accessed from a mobile device.
Promoting Mobile Technologies
The expansion of INIS bibliographic database to support mobile devices is part of ongoing iniatives at the IAEA to promote online-based knowledge-sharing and electronic learning (eLearning). To date, there are at least a dozen eLearning platforms within the Agency that cover diverse topics ranging from radiation oncology to nuclear law. In late 2011, the IAEA's Human Health Division within the Department of Nuclear Science and Applications (NAHU) opened a mobile learning (mLearning) programme to the gene

China can learn from India's blackouts?

Beijing (UPI) Aug 2, 2012

India's massive blackout this week can offer lessons for China, says a Chinese state-run paper. "India is stuck in a dilemma but China is also facing a developing bottleneck," states an editorial Thursday in the Communist Party-run Global Times. The blackouts in India Monday and Tuesday - considered the world's largest - left half of India's population without electricity.http://www.energy-daily.com/reports/China_can_learn_from_Indias_blackouts_999.html

Revisiting Reprocessing in South Korea

"Revisiting Reprocessing in South Korea"

A bilateral nuclear cooperation treaty between South Korea and the U.S. has been in place for more than 40 years. South Korea is now a major user and exporter of civilian nuclear energy technology, and is interested in revisiting provisions of the treaty in regard to uranium enrichment and spent fuel reprocessing. The U.S. is concerned with proliferation considerations. Dan Yurman at the ANS Nuclear Cafe examines the issues in the ongoing negotiations./http://ansnuclearcafe.org/2012/08/02/revisiting-reprocessing-in-south-korea/

Decrepit U.S. power grid starts to sputter

Decrepit U. S. power grid starts to sputter

System, overloaded by demand, needs costly overhaul, engineers say

By Ashley Halsey III, Thursday, August 02,12:20 AM

http://www.washingtonpost.com/todays_paper/A%20Section/2012-08-02/A/1/46.3.3340408716_epaper.html

NASA Landing nuclear powered rover on Mars using a Sky Crane

Mars Science Laboratory represents the first use of a "soft-landing" technique employed at Mars. The sheer mass of Mars Science Laboratory prevents engineers from using the familiar airbags to deliver their rover safely to the martian surface. As rovers become more capable and carry more instruments, they become larger. So, in order to accommodate this advanced mission, engineers designed a sky-crane method that will lower the rover to the surface. The Mars science lab mission landing will be in 3.5 days. (5:31 am UTC August 6, 2012).

Sino-Burmese pipeline under fire

A 16 billion yuan (US$2.5 billion) oil and gas pipeline running from Burma's coast and ending at an Anning refinery
is running into serious opposition and raising the specter of the Myitsone Dam controversy. The project, referred to as the Shwe pipeline, is facing fresh criticism from Burmese Parliamentarians. The country's democratic coalition, led by the Rakhine Nationalities Development Party
has introduced a motion to suspend work on the 2,800 kilometer long, Chinese-funded project, China Finance Online is reporting. Lawmakers are responding to environmental concerns
, reported labor strife and claims by villagers living in the path of the pipeline that they are experiencing forced relocations and intimidation by violence. Other villagers say they have moved willingly but never received payments promised by the Burmese government. Giving voice to these concerns, Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi addressed Parliament
July 25 and declared that development in Myanmar should benefit the country's ethnic minorities.

Complicating the situation is the course of the pipeline, which runs through northeastern Myanmar's Shan State, and enters China near Ruili
. The area through which the pipeline runs is experiencing one of the world's longest ongoing civil wars. In 2011 thousands of people fled intensified fighting between Kachin guerillas and the Burmese army and sought refuge in Yunnan. The United States is quickly opening its once-closed doors to Myanmar and this may be raising pressure on China National Petroleum Corporation to complete the Shwe project.
United States' president Barack Obama issued a signing statement in July lifting a 15-year ban on American oil companies investing in Myanmar. The Burmese government has also inked nine agreements
for gas and oil exploration with international companies since June. Construction on the Shwe pipeline began in 2009
. When completed in 2013, it will give China access to reserves containing an estimated one billion barrels of oil and 22 trillion cubic feet of natural gas located in the Bay of Bengal. The pipeline through Myanmar is an important component of China's long term energy strategy. Shipments through the pipeline will also come from oil fields in the Middle East and Africa. The pipeline is an attempt to bolster China's energy security by minimizing its reliance upon oil imports shipped by tanker ships through the narrow and US-controlled Strait of Malacca.
Images: shwe.org

Atomic Show #187 – Women In Nuclear (US WIN) 2012

Atomic Show #187 – Women In Nuclear (US WIN) 2012

http://atomicinsights.com/2012/08/atomic-show-187-women-in-nuclear-us-win-2012.html

Rod Adams interviewed three people who attended the 2012 Women In Nuclear annual conference held in Orlando, Florida. Julie Ezold is the manager of an isotope production program at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Sandy DePirro is a member of the oversight group at the Crystal River nuclear power plant, and Savannah Fitzwater is a graduate student at the Colorado School of Mines whose work focuses on nuclear non-proliferation.

Chevron bets on the ‘Goldilocks’ of gas

Group eyes shale’s next frontier but will need to convince millions of sceptical Slavs that they have nothing to fear from fracking
http://link.ft.com/r/5F39HH/EX2H67/EW4YCB/U15UGJ/TUJJ5E/PJ/h?a1=2012&a2=8&a3=3

Michele Kearney's Nuclear Wire

Friday, August 3, 2012

Related articles

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Keystone Moves North, Where Big Oil Is Losing

Obama may have stopped the U.S. pipeline, but now the fight has shifted to Canada

Nuclear Energy Institute FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NEI Commends Sen. Bingaman for Leadership in Tackling Used Fuel Policy

Related articles

Related articles

Nuclear Information Goes Mobile

IAEA Nuclear Information System Launches Mobile Version of Web Site

Story Resources

Decrepit U. S. power grid starts to sputter

System, overloaded by demand, needs costly overhaul, engineers say

By Ashley Halsey III, Thursday, August 02,12:20 AM

Sino-Burmese pipeline under fire