NEWS |
round up
FUEL KAZATOMPROM HAS FORMALLY signed the framework agreement with Genchi Global Ltd for the Company’s investment in the physical uranium fund, ANU Energy OEIC Ltd, registered at the Astana International Financial Centre.
BRAZIL’S INDÚSTRIAS NUCLEARES do Brasil has launched the 9th cascade of centrifuges at its Uranium Isotopic Enrichment Plant in Resende. INB said the launch makes it possible to meet 65% of the demand for annual refuelling at Angra 1.
THE URANIUM ENRICHMENT Centre (UEC) in Russia has completed the first delivery of low-enriched uranium (LEU) to Kazakhstan. The LEU is intended for Ulba-TVS, a joint Kazakh-Chinese enterprise for production of nuclear fuel.
SAFETY AND REGULATION CZECH R&D COMPANY signed a major long-term contract with the Egyptian Nuclear and Radiological Regulatory Authority to provide technical assistance to the Egyptian supervisory authority in licensing Egypt’s El Dabaa nuclear power plant.
AN IAEA OPERATIONAL Safety Review Team (OSART) team said the operator of Russia’s Kalinin NPP had demonstrated a commitment to safety in areas such as severe accident management training and the promotion of safety culture. The team also identified areas for further enhancement.
THE US NRC is to increase oversight at one of the Vogtle nuclear power plants under construction in Waynesboro, Georgia, after finalising two inspection findings involving the safety-related electrical raceway system at unit 3.
NUSCALE POWER HAS signed a MOU with Prodigy Clean Energy and Kinectrics to explore development of a regulatory framework to address licensing and deployment of a Prodigy Marine Power Station, which would integrate 1-12 NuScale Power Modules into a marine- based system.
RADWASTE AUSTRALIA’S FEDERAL GOVERNMENT has formally selected Napandee, a 211-hectare property near the town of Kimba on South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula as the site for a long-planned radioactive waste storage facility.
V the energy sector and should gradually decommission Russian-type reactors and build new plants.” Ukraine’s 15 reactors — at Zaporozhye, Rovno, South Ukraine and Khmelnitsky — comprise 13 VVER-1000s and two VVER-440s. Khmelnitsky has two operating units connected to the grid in 1987 and 2004. Construction of two more units began in 1985-1986 but stalled in 1990 with unit 3 at around 75% completion and unit 4 about 28% complete. In August 2020, Energoatom said it would
resume work on Khmelnitsky 3&4. Neither Westinghouse nor Energoatom have said whether the new agreement is for the completion of those units or the construction of two new ones. A technical delegation from Westinghouse
recently visited Khmelnitsky and Energoatom managers have taken a tour of stored AP1000 components from the cancelled VC Summer construction project in South Carolina. Westinghouse has indicated that these reactors will now be used in Ukraine. In response to questions from NEI, David Durham, president, plant solutions at Westinghouse was unable to give a timeline for construction and commissioning of the new reactors. He said components not available in Ukraine will be transported by ship and that the delivery schedule “is to be jointly decided”.
France IEA: France should review plans to reduce nuclear share The current rate of deployment of low-carbon energy technologies and energy efficiency solutions in France is not fast enough for the government to meet its energy and climate targets, requiring stronger policy efforts and increased investment, according to the International Energy Agency’s (IEA’s) 2021 Energy Policy Review of France. IEA notes that in 2019 France put into legislation the goal of reaching net zero emissions by 2050. The government’s 2030 Investment Programme and its economic recovery plan are among the most ambitious globally in terms of clean energy transitions, with innovative funding schemes to encourage building retrofits and low-carbon transport. However, IEA adds that, in 2022, the government will need to take important decisions to ensure the country gets on track to meet its 2050 net zero emissions goal, notably in terms of plans to modernise its nuclear power fleet. “France is approaching a crossroads, as key decisions on its future energy system need to be taken soon to ensure it can reach net zero emissions by 2050. By investing much more in energy efficiency, renewable energy and nuclear power, France can accelerate progress on its key energy and climate goals,” said IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol. Currently, France’s 2019 Energy and Climate
Law see nuclear share falling to 50% by 2035, with renewables making up the difference. But
8 | January 2022 |
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in 2019 its ageing nuclear fleet accounted for 71% of electricity production. The IEA report calls on the government to take a timely decision on a vision for France’s post-2030 electricity mix and on the related financing mechanisms to send clear signals to investors, especially on nuclear energy. IEA says France should:
● Clarify and review conditions of the legislative requirement to limit the contribution of nuclear energy to 50% of electricity generation.
● Take a timely decision on the role of nuclear beyond 2035, based on the completion of ongoing studies on achieving net zero by 2050.
● Ensure sustainable long-term funding of nuclear generation while preserving a competitive electricity market, including refurbishment and safety upgrades of existing reactors and the financing of new builds from 2023 onwards.
● Strengthen nuclear energy research on the energy transition, including flexible electricity from small modular reactors, cogeneration of electricity and heat and hydrogen production.
United Kingdom Hunterston 3 closes for good The UK’s Hunterston B1 (Reactor 3) was permanently closed down on 26 November, marking the end of 46 years of operation for this 490MWe advanced gas-cooled reactor (AGR). Its twin, Hunterston B2 (Reactor 4), is scheduled to shut down in January. Construction of Hunterston B began in 1968 and reactors 3 and 4 began operating in February 1976 and March 1977, respectively. In 2012, EDF Energy extended the generating life of the plant to March 2023, with a two-year window either side of that date. However, both units were taken offline in 2018 after cracks in their graphite cores were discovered during routine inspections. The UK’s Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR)
approved the restart of B2 in August 2020 and B1 in September 2020. Both reactors were taken offline earlier this year for more core inspections. In April, the ONR said the units could resume operation if inspection results were as expected, but it limited operation to 16.7TWd for unit 1 and 16.52TWd for unit 2 — about six months of operation for each. Unit 1 returned to service on 23 April and unit 2 on 5 June.
Japan Ikata 3 restarts Japan’s Shikoku Electric Power Co restarted Ikata 3 in Ehime Prefecture on 2 December. The 890MWe PWR started a refuelling outage in December 2019 but restart was delayed following a court injunction. In 2017, three residents filed a request
to suspend operation of the plant with the Yamaguchi District Court, which rejected it in March 2019. In response to an appeal, the U
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