NEI Nuclear Notes

There’s a lot going on in our world, and this Thursday at 8:30 a.m. EST, the Nuclear Energy Institute will be making its annual presentation to dozens of Wall Street analysts . The United States continues to operate the world’s largest fleet of reactors, and is the technology leader. Maria G. Korsnick , our president and chief executive, will talk about how we plan to embrace that leadership role, and how we are part of the nation’s critical infrastructure. Nuclear power is increasingly recognized at the state level as providing tremendous value, not all of it compensated in the markets. The reactors provide diversity to the system , always-on, 24/7 power, with no air emissions. They are impervious to pipeline glitches, frozen coal piles, droughts and other interruptions. New reactors marching toward completion in South Carolina and Georgia will be part of those states’ energy backbone for a long time, probably the remainder of the century. We are also moving towards second li...

If you missed NEI’s Wall Street Briefing last week – and you might have if you were in a snow bound part of the country – there was off key singing, a scandal and a major fistfight. Well, ok, none of that, but a pretty good overview of the nuclear world in 2013 and 14. You can watch the archived webcast here and view the slides use at the presentation (as a PDF) here . It’s handy to have the latter at hand while viewing the former. What you can’t see is how well attended and managed the event was, especially during a major snowfall. The trick in succeeding at this kind of event is to make sure the media has an opportunity to talk to the speakers. You can see the print press in action during the Q&A, but TV and radio reporters need special consideration – and got it, with several of the speakers able to appear on camera or on microphone to do one-on-one interviews. This is important, because it gets the messages at the briefing out to a larger audience – the one that doesn’t re...

Every February, NEI briefs Wall Street analysts and media on the nuclear energy industry – both where it’s been in the previous year and where it’s going the current year. The briefing will address 2013 power plant performance, 2014 priorities, the impact of changes in electricity markets, the status of new nuclear plant construction, small modular reactor development and a lot more. It’s really worth watching if you follow nuclear energy. It starts tomorrow, February 13, at 8:30 am EST. A webcast is available and it will be live tweeted (twittered, tweetered) at @N_E_I and @NEI_media (#NEIWSB). --- I was curious after reading through Sen. Lisa Murkowski’s report on grid stability yesterday (see post below ) as to where plants fired by other than nuclear energy are located in the United States. It’s certainly possible to just assume that where there is a nuclear facility, it basically makes all the electricity for that part of the state, but that’s just naïve. You mean there sti...

J. Scott Peterson The following guest post was written by J. Scott Peterson, NEI's senior vice president, communications. NEW YORK CITY—Despite challenging electricity markets and natural gas prices at a 13-year low, industry leaders are confident in the long-term prospects for nuclear energy and its contributions to the electricity mix and U.S. economic growth. On average, America’s 104 commercial reactors are the most efficient power producers on the grid—operating at 86 percent capacity factor. Capacity factor is a measure of efficiency, with a 100-percent rating equaling full power production 24/7, 365 days. Absent reactors in California, Florida and Nebraska that have been closed virtually all year for extended maintenance, the capacity factor at the other 100 reactors was just shy of 90 percent. “We continue to invest in these facilities to preserve their asset value,” NEI President and CEO Marv Fertel told nearly 200 financial analysts and journalists at the Insti...

First, the spinach: NEI's 2009 financial briefing for Wall Street analysts is now available on NEI's YouTube channel . Part 1 can be seen here : And now, the ice cream: AREVA Resources Canada sponsored a Save the Planet video contest . Contestants were asked to submit a "fun, creative, educational video" that answered the question, "How do you propose to solve the world's increasing energy demands?" Here is your 2009 People's Choice winner, The Adventures of Nuclear Power Man & the Energizers . Honorable mention honors [mine] for the PC/Mac spoof .

Shaw Group shares popped nearly 10% yesterday after the company announced record third quarter earnings - $53.9 million for the quarter ending in May. Shaw also set quarterly records for revenue ($1.8 billion) and project backlog ($16.4 billion). According to an AP report , Wall Street analysts are bullish, In a note to investors, Citi Investment Research analyst Brian Chin was upbeat on Shaw's results, particularly its nuclear power segment, which he said should see new awards in the next 12 months. He also said the company should witness "interesting activity" in its nuclear segment from international customers, particularly after a recent agreement allowing sales of civilian nuclear power technology from the U.S. to India. "Shaw's real opportunity is in South Africa, the (United Kingdom), India and China," Chin wrote. "All four regions could award potential contracts in the next 12 months."