NEI Nuclear Notes

BWX Technologies, Inc. ’s (BWXT) Nuclear Equipment Division (NED) has received nuclear accreditation from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) -- what in the business is known as the "N" Stamp . Nuclear accreditation from ASME means that the authorized vendor has produced the commercial nuclear-grade components in accordance with the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Nuclear Codes and Standards. The Certificates of Accreditation and Authorization are applicable to NED’s manufacturing facilities in Barberton, Ohio and Mount Vernon, Indiana. Earlier this year, when NEI CEO Skip Bowman visited Lynchburg to give a speech, he had already gotten word that this announcement was imminent, and mentioned it in his remarks that night. That doesn't mean we can't say congratulations again. From everyone at NEI to our friends at BWXT, Bravo Zulu! Technorati tags: Nuclear Energy , Nuclear Power , Electricity , Manufacturing

This via Nadejda M. Victor, who wrote about the price of Russian natural gas the tribulations of Gazprom in yesterday's Washington Post : The truth is that these price increases are not political. Rather, they reflect worrisome economic and geological facts about Russian gas fields. The Kremlin is not simply trying to use Gazprom to reassert authority in Belarus, Ukraine or anywhere else. There are in fact deep problems with Gazprom -- problems created by its inefficient management and a looming decline in gas production. Going forward, that's bad news, as not only Europe, but soon North America, will have to rely on Russian natural gas. All the more reason to turn to alternative sources like nuclear energy. Apparently, we weren't the only ones who noticed Victor's piece. Technorati tags: Energy , Electricity , Home Heating , Natural Gas , Russia , Electricity

Our old friends at the Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League have announced their opposition to Duke Power's intention to build a new nuclear power plant . But folks in North Carolina ought to watch out, because as we discovered in Virginia in 2005, BREDL has a history of playing fast and loose with the facts . We'll be watching. Technorati tags: Nuclear Energy , Nuclear Power , Environment , Energy , Health Physics , Junk Science , Duke Power

You don't have to be an acute observer of the world of online politics to know that the Daily Kos isn't exactly a bastion of pro-nuclear support. But a recent reader poll that appeared today may give us some reasons for hope. When I stopped by earlier this evening, almost 40 percent of voters said they believed nuclear would play a leading role in replacing fossil fuels. Interesting. All the more reason to keep talking to anyone and everyone about nuclear energy. Technorati tags: Nuclear Energy , Nuclear Power , Electricity , Environment , Energy

Steve Kraft, NEI's senior director of used fuel management, appeared on the E&E TV program "On Point" Monday to talk about the various issues at play in used fuel management, including Yucca Mountain, the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership and reprocessing, and waste confidence. “What's necessary is continued progress. You don't have to have Yucca Mountain operating, but you have to have visible continued progress [on it] to help companies [that are considering building new nuclear plants] see, and their communities see, that there will be a pathway forward to waste disposal in the future.” Click here to read the transcript and watch the clip.

The Department of Energy today submitted legislation to Congress to facilitate implementation of the federal government’s used nuclear fuel management program. Here's what NEI President and CEO Skip Bowman had to say in a press release : "The Nuclear Fuel Management and Disposal Act is a logical next step to Congress’s bipartisan approval in 2002 of the joint resolution that designated Yucca Mountain as the site for a state-of-the-art repository. The bill will help achieve the opening of the Yucca Mountain repository and maximize the myriad benefits that the nation receives from nuclear energy for the long term. Nuclear energy strengthens U.S. energy security by reliably providing electricity to one of every five homes and businesses." And here's what Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman said in a DOE press release yesterday: "We need to ensure a strong and diversified energy mix to fuel our nation’s economy, and nuclear power is an important component of that mix. ...

The big news out of Britain this week was an announcement that the government would have to pay over $120 billion (70 billion pounds) to clean up their national nuclear program . This led the folks at Treehugger to write: We thought this news item adds needed perspective to the notion that mitigating climate change with nuclear energy will be cost effective over the full life cycle. New sites will at some future point again have to be made "safe." Much of a wind turbine will have positive scrap value at the end of it's design life; while much of a nuclear generation station, and all of its uranium series waste will have a negative value. Putting aside for a moment the long-term potential of recycling used nuclear fuel , what John Laumer at Treehugger neglected to mention is that most of the funds dedicated are going to be used to address the legacy of Britain's military nuclear programs, not commercial nuclear energy production. Here's former U.K. Energy Minist...