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THE SWEDISH GOVERNMENT has formally proposed acquiring a 60% stake in Videberg Kraft AB, a project company dedicated to developing new nuclear reactors on the Värö peninsula next to at the existing Ringhals NPP. This project is part of Sweden’s updated energy roadmap, which aims to build the equivalent of 10 new full-scale reactors by 2045.


NEW JERSEY GOVERNOR Mikie Sherrill has signed legislation to remove a key obstacle to new nuclear power and to launch a new Nuclear Task Force. With the moratorium lifted, the newly formed Nuclear Task Force will begin its work of advancing the state’s pursuit of new nuclear energy.


SAFETY AND SECURITY TOKYO ELECTRIC POWER Company Holdings (Tepco) suspended cooling of a used fuel pool at unit 1 of the Fukushima Daiini NPP after smoke was detected and an alarm sounded. According to public broadcaster NHK, the pool water temperature stood at 26.5 degrees Celsius when the cooling system was halted, leaving about 8 days before it would exceed the 65-degree Celsius threshold set for safe operation.


AN INTELLIGENT FOREST fire prevention system has been put into operation at China’s Ningde NPP in Fujian province marking the station’s transition to a new stage of digital transformation based on data management, intelligent perception and closed-loop response. This system, using the latest information technologies, creates an intelligent fire barrier covering the entire territory, ensuring accuracy and


high efficiency.


REGULATION THE US NUCLEAR Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued two final rules under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) aimed at streamlining environmental reviews while maintaining environmental compliance. NRC said these regulatory changes reflect its broader initiative to modernise and optimise its NEPA review process.


ACCORDING TO THE US Department of Energy Office of Inspector General (DOE-OIG), the Department of Energy (DOE) could improve its oversight of demonstration and deployment projects. The DOE-OIG is an independent oversight agency established in 1977 to monitor the DOE. Its primary mission is to protect taxpayer interests by promoting efficiency and integrity while preventing misconduct


8 | May 2026 | www.neimagazine.com repository launches Bulgarian waste


Bulgaria’s Acting Energy Minister Traicho Traikov has inaugurated the National Repository for Radioactive Waste (NKhRAO – Natsionalnovo Khranilishe za Radioaktivni Otpadtsi (НХРАО) following 15 years of construction work, the Ministry of Energy announced. The repository, located at the Radyana site


area close to the Kozloduy NPP, will store low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste generated in Bulgaria from industry, medicine and domestic use. It will not accept foreign radioactive material or used nuclear fuel and is expected to be filled over the next 60 years, after which it will be closed. It will be monitored throughout its lifetime and for the next 300 years. Dilyan Petrov, Executive Director of the


State Enterprise for Radioactive Waste (DPRAO – Drzhavnovo RadioAktivni Otpadtsi) said the site will store mainly materials such as contaminated clothing and tools, which account for around 90% of waste generated from nuclear power production. It will also take waste from decommissioning of the first four units of the Kozloduy NPP and from the operation of existing two units. The facility consists of 66 disposal cells


arranged across three platforms, with the first stage containing 22 cells currently operational in which 6336 containers can be stored. Each cell is made of reinforced concrete and can hold 288 reinforced concrete containers. A movable roof structure protects the cells from external conditions during filling.


United Kingdom Fusion roadmap unveiled The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) Group has launched its 2026–2030 organisational strategy. It is based on the UK Government’s Fusion Strategy launched in March and aligns with the Strategy of UKAEA subsidiary company, UK Fusion Energy Ltd. The UKAEA Strategy outlines objectives


for 2030, including completing a detailed design of the STEP Fusion prototype power plant; increasing the number of UK companies delivering fusion products and services; completing new research facilities at Culham Campus in Oxfordshire; and, growing a new generation of fusion scientists and engineers.


UKAEA’s Strategy sees fusion as four


interrelated challenges: ● Effective fusion core – to deliver sufficient power output, controlling the plasma while managing the demands on the components.


● Fuel self-sufficiency – to operate an efficient, closed cycle without the need of a sustained external supply of fusion fuel.


Traikov said the project places Bulgaria among countries with advanced nuclear energy infrastructure, completing a significant part of the national nuclear safety cycle. “The full cycle of capabilities and equipment available in these countries encompasses a wide range of facilities and activities, and in this way we are effectively closing the cycle of safe operation and environmental protection,” he noted. The facility includes two movable steel


covers each weighing about 650 tonnes and a remotely controlled container arrangement system, that uses 30-tonne bridge cranes. “Various methods have also been introduced to reduce the volume of waste to effectively use the capacity of the facility: by plasma combustion, super pressing, decontamination of hard waste and precipitation and evaporation of liquid,” said Traikov. “These involve modern high-tech solutions and engineering experience, which can be exported as a service for the construction of future storage facilities in other countries.” The repository was primarily funded by


a grant of approximately €76m ($89m) from the Kozloduy International Decommissioning Support Fund (KIDSF) administered by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) on behalf of the European Commission and other international contributors. The project also received national co-financing totalling approximately BGN34m ($20m) from the Bulgarian government. ■


● Systems integration – to combine diverse components and systems into one energy- producing installation.


● Affordability and attractiveness – to do all the above in a way that is affordable.


UKAEA will focus its work with industry and


academia to build knowledge and capability across the technical disciplines required: plasma understanding and control; fuel cycle development; advanced materials; robotics and automation; fusion technologies including high- temperature superconducting (HTS) magnets; components production; integration and design; and advanced computing. UKAEA will also serve as the ‘Fusion Partner’


to UK Fusion Energy Ltd, applying technical knowledge in these areas to advance the design and development of the STEP prototype power plant. Efforts will be spread across its four sites – Culham Campus in Oxfordshire, West Burton in Nottinghamshire, Cumbria, and South Yorkshire. As part of UKAEA’s 2026-2030 Strategy


rollout, it is launching an SME guide to facilitate small- to medium-sized enterprises


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