It was the earthquake that killed 20,000 people. Has Japan recovered? A decade on, Julian Ryall returned to Tohoku in the hope that its people had rebuilt lives. Instead, he found a region still in mourning.

Telegraph 27th Feb 2021 read more »

France’s Nuclear Safety Authority (ASN) has approved extending the lifetime of the country’s oldest nuclear reactors for a further 10 years. Electricity operator EDF will be in charge of improving the safety of the 900 MWe plants, which were intended to run for 40 years but will now run for 50. The reactors in question are the oldest of the French fleet, having been commissioned in the early 1980s. Approval for their continued service comes with several conditions, including that improvements be made to ensure that radioactivity remains confined in the event of an accident.

RFI 25th Feb 2021 read more »

The risks of extending the operating life of EDF’s 900 MW reactors. Report of the study on the risks of extending the operating life beyond 40 years of EDF’s 32 reactors with 900 MW of electrical power, carried out on the basis of the draft ASN investigation report on the generic phase of the fourth periodic review of the 900 MW reactors. This study was carried out for the attention of the Parliamentary Office for the Evaluation of Scientific and Technological Choices (OPECST). This study provides a better understanding of the challenges of the ASN decision of 23 February 2021 (n ° 2021-DC-076) setting EDF the requirements applicable to the 32 reactors of 900 MW in operation, as well as the deadlines for their application, in view of the conclusions of the generic phase of their 4th periodic review.

Global Chance 26th Feb 2021 read more »

The government of Greenland has awarded Orano two mineral exploration permits for uranium deposits in the southeast and southwest of the country, the group said on February 4, 2021 in a statement. The area concerned would be more than 3,500 square kilometers wide, specifies the Sortir du nuclear network.

Reporterre 11th Feb 2021 read more »

Japan has joined the global drive toward decarbonization. Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has made decarbonization a key element of growth strategy for three reasons: the need for climate action, job creation from new investments, and the lower costs of renewable energy versus fossil energy. However, Japan has another energy issue, denuclearization. Given public opinion, new nuclear power plants seem unlikely. The real question is whether to abandon the usable ones. We think that decarbonization will go faster if Japan uses its existing nuclear plants to fund the infrastructure needed to decarbonize Japan. How much will new infrastructure be needed for decarbonization? First, since about 90% of Japan’s 13 exajoule energy needs are based on fossil fuel sources, about 90% of the infrastructure may need to be replaced, repurposed, or updated. Moreover, a decarbonized Japan will depend more on electricity and less on fuels. Therefore, the share of infrastructure in electricity will have to rise. Moreover, the fuel infrastructure, for use where highly concentrated energy is needed such as steel and cement, will have to shift from fossil-based fuels to hydrogen or ammonia.

Nikkei Asia 27th Feb 2021 read more »

A revised mixed oxide (MOX) fuel utilisation plan, based on the latest operational plan for the Rokkasho Reprocessing Plant and the MOX Fuel Fabrication Plant, has been released by Japan’s Federation of Electric Power Companies (FEPC). While only four Japanese reactors have so far been restarted using MOX fuel, FEPC envisages at least 12 units running on the fuel by FY2030. FEPC represents the 11 power companies, comprising nine utilities (excluding Okinawa Electric Power), Japan Atomic Power Company and the Electric Power Development Company (J-Power).

World Nuclear News 26th Feb 2021 read more »

A former head of US power utility Scana Corporation has pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud in not disclosing deep problems with a nuclear power project. Kevin Marsh, who was chairman and chief executive of the South Carolina company, oversaw his company’s involvement in a failed project to build two AP1000 pressurised water reactors at the Virgil C Summer nuclear power plant in the state. With the guilty plea, Marsh admitted that he intentionally defrauded ratepayers by giving over-optimistic assessments of progress on the scheme so that his company could obtain rate increases from Scana’s customers and qualify for up to $2.2bn in tax credits. After the scheme broke ground in March 2013, it suffered delays and cost overruns. By late 2016, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ), Marsh knew that efforts by engineer Westinghouse to improve the pace and productivity of the project were “woefully inadequate”. Marsh learned that at least one unit under construction was in danger of not being complete and producing power by 31 December, 2020, a deadline that Scana had to meet to secure federal tax credits worth up to $2.2bn.

Global Construction Review 26th Feb 2021 read more »

Republicans criticizing Haaland’s nomination have ties to fossil fuels. The congresswoman has faced hostile questioning from senators during her confirmation for interior secretary. Some of them are personally invested in fossil fuels.

Guardian 26th Feb 2021 read more »

Iran has threatened to pull out of a deal struck with UN weapons inspectors last weekend if western countries go ahead with plans to censure it over its failure to cooperate fully with the International Atomic Energy Agency. Western leaders are planning to table a motion at the IAEA next week condemning Iran for pulling out of the overarching agreement with the UN body giving inspectors access to its nuclear sites. The IAEA director general, Rafael Grossi, responded to the Iranian pullout by striking a three-month deal in Tehran last Sunday that he said left him satisfied that his inspectors could still continue to do their work, albeit less effectively than before.

Guardian 26th Feb 2021 read more »

The oldest nuclear reactors extended by ten years. EDF’s 32 900-megawatt reactors are the oldest in operation in France. They were originally designed to operate for forty years. This is a decision that officially opens the way to extending the life of the oldest reactors in France’s nuclear fleet beyond forty years. In an opinion published Thursday, February 25, the Nuclear Safety Authority (ASN) considers that “all the planned provisions open the prospect” of a continuation of the activity of the 32 French 900 megawatt (MW) reactors for a ten-year period. While French regulations do not provide for a maximum “lifespan” for reactors, an assumption of forty years of operation was adopted during their design.

Le Monde 25th Feb 2021 read more »

Ouest France 25th Feb 2021 read more »

Liberation 25th Feb 2021 read more »

ASN 25th Feb 2021 read more »

France’s nuclear safety regulator, the Autorité de Sûreté Nucléaire (ASN), has set the conditions for the continued operation of EDF’s 900 MWe reactors beyond 40 years. The regulator said it considers the measures planned by EDF combined with those prescribed by ASN will ensure the safety of the units for a further 10 years of operation.

World Nuclear News 25th Feb 2021 read more »

Geoff Gill reviews how the accident played out, and the huge engineering challenges involved in making the site safe.

Chemical Engineer 25th Feb 2021 read more »

Japan’s policy of making active use of nuclear energy, promoted for more than a half century, has been stalled because safety concerns among the public remain strong 10 years after the country’s worst nuclear accident. Before the March 2011 accident at Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc.’s Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power station, 54 nuclear reactors were in operation across the country. Nuclear power generation completely stopped in the nation after the unprecedented triple meltdown accident. Since then, only nine reactors have been brought back online after consent from local communities concerned was obtained.

Jiji Press 26th Feb 2021 read more »