nuclear

A government-run development bank is expected to end its ban on investment in nuclear energy, a move that could allow U.S. companies to take a greater role in foreign nuclear power projects. The U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) as early as this week could lift its prohibition on supporting nuclear power. The DFC on […]

Officials in South Africa and across the African continent continue to explore new nuclear power generation projects, and the region provides an opportunity for other countries to export their advanced nuclear

Germany Adopts National Strategies for Energy, Climate, Hydrogen. Twenty days before Germany commandeers the European Union Council presidency, Germany on June 12 adopted two national strategies that could

Moscow (June 26, 2020) – Preparations are now underway in Russia to build new power units in the Leningrad and Smolensk regions. The corresponding decision was signed by Alexey Likhachev, Rosatom State Atomic Corporation Director General. Сommenting on this decision, Likhachev said: “The Russian nuclear power industry has approached this stage with newly developed types […]

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) on June 23 accepted for formal review Centrus Energy Corp.’s application to produce high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) at its Piketon, Ohio, facility. The move marks a third major regulatory milestone for advanced nuclear over the past month. The NRC’s acceptance of Centrus’ application follows a 4-0 vote by the commission on […]

Russian state atomic energy corporation Rosatom is working with Paris-based Framatome and GE Steam Power, which is headquartered in the U.S., to secure contracts to construct the Belene nuclear power plant in northern Bulgaria near the Danube River, which forms the country’s border with Romania. An On-Again Off-Again History The Belene project has a long […]

WILMINGTON, NC—June 10, 2020—Teollisuuden Voima Oyj (TVO) has awarded a contract to GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GEH) to provide outage services for the Olkiluoto Nuclear Power Plant in Eurajoki, Finland. GEH will provide control rod drive mechanism exchange services for Olkiluoto units 1 and 2 for the remainder of the plant’s operating license. The first […]

Another legal challenge has been filed against the ongoing effort to build a storage site for U.S. nuclear waste in the New Mexico desert. Beyond Nuclear, among the environmental and other groups opposed to the project that would be built by Holtec International, on June 4 filed a petition for review in the U.S. Court […]

MONTREAL: June 9, 2020 – SNC-Lavalin (TSX:SNC) is pleased to announce its wholly-owned subsidiary Candu Energy Inc., was awarded two contracts by Societatea Nationala Nuclearelectrica S.A. (SNN). The contracts are for fuel channel and feeder assembly inspections on the Cernavoda Unit 1 CANDU® nuclear reactor during the 2020 outage. These contract wins are aligned with […]

The man considered second-in-command at the former SCANA Corp. has agreed to plead guilty to criminal conspiracy fraud charges stemming from his role in the failed V.C. Summer nuclear power plant construction project. Stephen A. Byrne, SCANA’s former chief operating officer, will plead guilty for his alleged criminal actions, according to a document filed June […]

An official monitoring the progress of the Vogtle nuclear expansion project in Georgia said in testimony filed June 5 with the state’s Public Service Commission that the two new reactors are “highly unlikely” to meet state-approved deadlines, and also will probably have additional cost overruns. The expansion project involves construction of two, 1,100-MW AP1000 reactors […]

SOUTH HOLLAND, Ill., June 3, 2020 — Steel Guard Safety Corp., a leading manufacturer of Industrial Curtain & Specialty Barrier Products announced the release of Lead Wool Blanket Manufacturing with QQ-C-40 Wool. The business clients in Nuclear Power have expanded machinery with heavy duty presses and CNC quilting machine to accommodate the exact manufacturing for the […]

The joke about fusion energy is that it’s 30 years away and always will be. But significant recent advances in fusion science and technology could potentially put the first fusion power on the grid as soon

ATLANTA – May 22, 2020 – The final module for Georgia Power’s Vogtle Unit 3, a massive water tank, has been placed atop the containment vessel and shield building roof at the company’s Vogtle 3 & 4 nuclear expansion project near Waynesboro, Georgia. The installation represents the final module placement for Unit 3, marking another […]

Nine projects will get $27 million in federal funding to develop digital twin technology for promising advanced nuclear reactor designs—including Kairos, Xe-100, BWRX-300, and the SSR-W—and help achieve a ten-fold reduction in their operations and maintenance (O&M) costs. The funding announced by the Department of Energy (DOE) on May 13 will be furnished under the […]

A first-of-its-kind nuclear reactor that will use a 3D-printed core, advanced materials, and integrated sensors and controls is on track for completion by 2023. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, work is ramping up to demonstrate the Transformational Challenge Reactor (TCR), an innovative micro-reactor program spearheaded by Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and project partners, to include […]

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is planning a technical conference this summer that would look at long-term impacts of the coronavirus pandemic on the energy industry. The discussion would look at how the industry should approach investments and infrastructure development should the trend of lessening demand for electricity, and oil and gas, continue. Industry […]

It’s spring outage season in the power industry. A time when plants of all types typically shut down and perform scheduled maintenance to ensure all essential equipment is as ready as possible to run reliably at full load for days on end during the peak summer season. This year, outages have been complicated by the […]

May 4, 2020 – Framatome and the Technical University of Munich (TUM) recently began the commercial development of uranium-molybdenum fuel (UMo) for nuclear research reactors. Framatome and TUM will design and install the fuel manufacturing production line, and develop, produce and irradiate new fuel prototypes. The project will take place at the CERCA Research and Innovation […]

OPG Reaches First Criticality at Darlington 2, Delays Work at Unit 3. Ontario Power Generation’s (OPG’s) Darlington Unit 2 reactor, the first of four reactors the company is overhauling at the Darlington

When maintenance is required on permanently installed fire protection equipment, it can jeopardize safety. One nuclear power station added additional fire pumps to ensure plant needs could be met under any

Several industry-led developments and a possible new advanced nuclear demonstration have been announced since the White House working group laid out a national strategy to revive the nuclear industry last week. Centrus Energy on April 28 signed a letter of intent with Advanced Reactor Concepts (ARC), developer of a 100-MWe sodium-cooled fast-reactor design, that potentially […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. (April 28, 2020) – The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced selections to receive funding to accelerate advanced nuclear technology development. There are two selections – one to support site preparation for a future domestic advanced reactor demonstration project and one for an advanced reactor regulatory licensing grant. The projects have a […]

One of the two remaining operating reactors at the Indian Point Energy Center in Buchanan, New York, will close for good on April 30, shutting down early as part of an agreement between Entergy, the plant’s operator, the state of New York, and environmental groups who had pressured officials to close the plant. The 1,020-MW […]

Moltex Energy, a privately held nuclear power development company headquartered in the UK with an office in New Brunswick, Canada, has entered into a collaboration agreement with Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL) to support Moltex’s nuclear fuel development program for its Stable Salt Reactor (SSR), among the latest technology advancements for small modular reactors (SMRs). The […]

The U.S. will attempt to regain its international standing as a world leader in nuclear energy through a three-pronged strategy that will essentially seek to strengthen the full domestic nuclear fuel cycle, possibly deny imports of nuclear fuel fabricated in Russia or China, and promote advanced reactor technologies. The strategy is outlined in the White […]

April 14, 2020 — Framatome signed a long-term service contract with the Taishan Nuclear Power Joint Venture Company Limited (TNPJVC) to support operations of two EPRs at the Taishan Nuclear Power Plant in China. This contract covers nuclear plant outage and maintenance work, including spare parts supply and engineering services for eight years. “This contract […]

April 8, 2020 – Framatome was awarded a contract to deliver the reactor protection system for units 1 and 2 at the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant II in Russia. The contract includes planning, designing, manufacturing and implementing the system. This contract builds on the 2018 memorandum of understanding Framatome signed with Rusatom Automated Control Systems (RASU), a […]

It’s a rite of spring for the U.S. nuclear power industry. Plant operators schedule refueling outages, taking a reactor offline not only to refuel but also to perform repairs or other maintenance, and facility upgrades. It’s a task made more problematic this year, as social distancing and travel restrictions brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic […]

Operators of the world’s nuclear reactors are doing more than keeping the lights during the coronavirus pandemic. Along with taking steps to protect their workforce, and having plans in place to keep their facilities running at a time of critical need for power, they also are using nuclear technologies to detect and fight COVID-19. From […]