Skip to main content

NEI News Clips

By Eric McErlain
Here are some other noteworthy news items kicking around the office:

The NRC renewed the operating licenses for Farley Nuclear Plant, Units 1 and 2, for an additional 20 years. Congratulations to the team at Southern Nuclear Operating company.

In Germany, many environmentalists celebrated the closing of a second nuclear reactor. The closing is part of an agreement between the German government and electric utilities that was concluded back in 2000.

A few weeks ago, we noted that this move may be more costly than some proponents are willing to admit. In addition, the utility executive who negotiated the original agreement with the government said that it was inevitable that Germany would have to turn back to nuclear energy in order to meet aggressive targets on cutting greenhouse gas emissions. Jay Currie has further thoughts.

For a look at the dynamics that are helping to create an unlikely alliance between environmentalists and those concerned with national security, check out Futurepundit. For more, check out EV World.

Thomas John Munsch Jr., the attorney who oversaw the licensing of the Shippingport Nuclear Power Plant, died on May 11. He was 92. Our condolences to his family and friends.

With uranium prices setting new record highs, we shouldn't be surprised at the news that another uranium mine is being re-opened, this time in Wyoming.

U.K. Science Advisor David King said nuclear energy may be the only way Britain can meet its targets on tackling climate change. And U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair reiterated his stand that nuclear energy needs to be considered for Britain's future energy mix.

ICAAP 2005 starts on Saturday in Seoul, South Korea.

A hearty thanks to one California resident for sticking up for San Onofre:
Don Ritchie, noting that he lives close enough to San Onofre to see the blinking red warning lights atop the plant's towering containment domes, said he does not fear nuclear catastrophe or the radioactive waste stored there.

"I haven't had the tiniest concern," Ritchie said. "As far as I'm concerned, if they want to put in a Unit 3, it's fine with me."

The official celebration of Armed Forces Day isn't until May 21st, but the great city of Chattanooga held their parade last Friday. NEI's President and CEO, Skip Bowman, was asked to give a salute to our men and women in uniform.

Technorati tags: , , , , ,

Comments

Rob said…
Wow. Does Richie know that SONGS is currently operating units 2 and 3? Unit 1, a much smaller reactor, has been decommissioned for years.
May 16, 2005 at 2:56 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Activists' Claims Distort Facts about Advanced Reactor Design

By
Below is from our rapid response team . Yesterday, regional anti-nuclear organizations asked federal nuclear energy regulators to launch an investigation into what it claims are “newly identified flaws” in Westinghouse’s advanced reactor design, the AP1000. During a teleconference releasing a report on the subject, participants urged the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to suspend license reviews of proposed AP1000 reactors. In its news release, even the groups making these allegations provide conflicting information on its findings. In one instance, the groups cite “dozens of corrosion holes” at reactor vessels and in another says that eight holes have been documented. In all cases, there is another containment mechanism that would provide a barrier to radiation release. Below, we examine why these claims are unwarranted and why the AP1000 design certification process should continue as designated by the NRC. Myth: In the AP1000 reactor design, the gap between the shield bu...
23 comments
Read more

Wednesday Update

By
From NEI’s Japan micro-site: NRC, Industry Concur on Many Post-Fukushima Actions Industry/Regulatory/Political Issues • There is a “great deal of alignment” between the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the industry on initial steps to take at America’s nuclear energy facilities in response to the nuclear accident in Japan, Charles Pardee, the chief operating officer of Exelon Generation Co., said at an agency briefing today. The briefing gave stakeholders an opportunity to discuss staff recommendations for near-term actions the agency may take at U.S. facilities. PowerPoint slides from the meeting are on the NRC website. • The International Atomic Energy Agency board has approved a plan that calls for inspectors to evaluate reactor safety at nuclear energy facilities every three years. Governments may opt out of having their country’s facilities inspected. Also approved were plans to maintain a rapid response team of experts ready to assist facility operators recoverin...
Post a Comment
Read more

Nuclear Utility Moves Up in Credit Ratings, Bank is "Comfortable with Nuclear Strategy"

By
Some positive signs that nuclear utilities can continue to receive positive ratings even while they finance new nuclear plants for the first time in decades: Wells Fargo upgrades SCANA to Outperform from Market Perform Wells analyst says, "YTD, SCG shares have underperformed the Regulated Electrics (total return +2% vs. +9%). Shares trade at 11.3X our 10E EPS, a modest discount to the peer group median of 11.8X. We view the valuation as attractive given a comparatively constructive regulatory environment and potential for above-average long-term EPS growth prospects ... Comfortable with Nuclear Strategy. SCG plans to participate in the development of two regulated nuclear units at a cost of $6.3B, raising legitimate concerns regarding financing and construction. We have carefully considered the risks and are comfortable with SCG’s strategy based on a highly constructive political & regulatory environment, manageable financing needs stretched out over 10 years, strong partners...
Post a Comment
Read more