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GNEP Announcement Coming Later Today

By Eric McErlain
Just got the following media advisory from the Department of Energy:
Today, Thursday, August 3, 2006, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy Dennis Spurgeon will host a press conference call to discuss Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP) announcements. GNEP, part of President Bush’s Advanced Energy Initiative, was announced by Energy Secretary Samuel W. Bodman and Energy Deputy Secretary Clay Sell earlier this year, and seeks to develop worldwide consensus on enabling expanded use of economical, carbon-free nuclear energy to meet growing electricity demand.
Stay tuned. I'll be listening to the call at 2:00 p.m. U.S. EDT.

UPDATE: Press release from Energy just crossed my desk:
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced $20 million to conduct detailed siting studies for public or commercial entities interested in hosting DOE’s Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP) facilities. Entities could qualify to receive up to $5 million per site. DOE also announced that it is seeking expressions of interest to obtain input from U.S. and international nuclear industry on the feasibility of accelerating development and deployment of advanced recycling technologies by proceeding with commercial scale demonstration facilities, specifically a Consolidated Fuel Treatment Facility and an Advanced Burner Reactor.

“The siting studies and expressions of interest enable public and commercial entities to provide useful input to the Department’s decision-making process for siting and building GNEP facilities in the U.S.,” DOE Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy Dennis Spurgeon said. “These are important steps forward for the GNEP initiative.”

[...]

The Department is considering a two-track approach to demonstrate technologies under GNEP. The first track involves deployment of commercial scale facilities for which advanced technologies are available now or in the near future. The second track would focus on further research and development on transmutation fuels (containing plutonium and minor actinides) technologies.

Under the first track, DOE is currently considering two commercial scale facilities: a Consolidated Fuel Treatment Center, capable of separating used fuel into its usable and waste components; and an Advanced Burner Reactor which would convert transuranics into shorter-lived radioisotopes while producing electricity.

Under the second track, an Advanced Fuel Cycle Facility announced earlier this year to support development of technologies to separate and fabricate the transmutation fuels for the Advanced Burner Reactor would be designed and directed through DOE’s national laboratories and therefore, is not part of the siting studies or the industry-requested expressions of interest.
Call starts in 20 minutes. I'll be listening.

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