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Rosatom opens builders camp for Yakutsk low-power NPP
01 September, 2023
A temporary camp has been opened near the village of Ust-Kuyga in the Ust-Yansky district of the Russian Autonomous Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) for builders participating in construction of a low-power NPP (ASMM – Atomnoi Stantsii Maloi Moshnosti).

Zaporizhia NPP Director discusses conditions at the plant
23 August, 2023
Yuriy Chernichuk, Director of the Zaporizhia NPP, in a long interview with Russia’s Kommersant, described conditions at the plant and its future prospects. Currently, five of the plant’s six units with VVER-1000 reactors are in a cold shutdown, while one is in a hot shutdown to generate steam for the plant’s own needs.

Solving the key nuclear challenge
16 August, 2023
With an aging workforce, extended reactor lifetimes and a swath of new nuclear development in the pipeline, the nuclear sector needs to get its house in order when it comes to workforce management. A new report from the IAEA explains how.

General Fusion to build new fusion demo machine
15 August, 2023
Canada’s General Fusion has announced plans to build a new Magnetised Target Fusion (MTF) machine at the company’s new Richmond headquarters. The MTF is designed to achieve fusion conditions of over 100m degrees Celsius by 2025, and to progress toward scientific breakeven by 2026. General Fusion has also completed the first round of its Series F raise for a combined $25m of funding. It was supported by existing investors, BDC Capital and GIC and also included new grant funding from the Government of British Columbia. This builds upon the Canadian government’s ongoing support through the Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF).

NRC authorizes fuel loading and operation at Vogtle 4
10 August, 2023
The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission has authorized Southern Nuclear Operating Company to load fuel and begin operation of Vogtle Unit 4 in Georgia. This is the second reactor to reach this step in the NRC’s combined license process.

Ghana pursues nuclear co-operation with USA and Russia
28 July, 2023
Ghana’s Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NRA) on behalf of the Government of Ghana welcomed Christopher T Hanson, Chairman of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), and his team on a two-day working visit based on a bilateral arrangement for cooperation and the exchange of technical information signed in 2017.

UK launches nuclear revival
20 July, 2023
Great British Nuclear (GBN) is to drive rapid expansion of nuclear power in the UK at an unprecedented scale and pace as the government kickstarts a competition to encourage the development of small modular reactor (SMR) technology. A joint statement from the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero, GBN, the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA), Energy Security Secretary Grant Shapps, and Nuclear Minister Andrew Bowie announced “a massive revival of nuclear power”. This is intended to place the UK “at the forefront of a global race to develop cutting-edge technologies to rapidly deliver cleaner, cheaper, more secure energy”.

Norway to investigate deployment of Seaborg SMR
20 July, 2023
Norway’s Norsk Kjernekraft has signed a letter of intent with Denmark's Seaborg Technologies to investigate the possible deployment of Seaborg's compact molten salt reactor (CMSR) in Norway.

Howden to supply helium circulator system for Xe-100
19 July, 2023
US-based X-energy Reactor Company has selected UK-based Howden, a subsidiary of Chart Industries, as its preferred strategic supplier of the helium circulator system for its Xe-100 high temperature gas cooled advanced modular reactor intended for the UK market.

IAEA approves Japan’s plans to release treated water into the sea at Fukushima
07 July, 2023
An International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safety review has concluded that Japan’s plans to release treated water stored at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station (FDNPS) into the sea are consistent with IAEA safety standards. In a report formally presented by Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi to Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida during his recent visit to Tokyo the IAEA also said discharges of the treated water would have a negligible radiological impact on people or the environment.

Canada strengthens medical isotope production
04 July, 2023
Canada has announced the launch of the Canadian Medical Isotope Ecosystem (CMIE) with funding of up to CAD35m ($26.4m) over five years to develop initiatives focused on the production, advancement and distribution of medical isotopes and radiopharmaceuticals. The initiative was announced at the Bruce Power Visitors' Centre. CMIE will be under the oversight of the Centre for Probe Development and Commercialisation (CPDC) and TRIUMF Innovations and will support projects with Bruce Power, BWXT Medical, McMaster University and Canadian Nuclear Laboratories. The funding announcement was made possible through Innovation, Science & Economic Development’s Strategic Innovation Fund, which provides major investments in innovative projects.

Grossi reports on situation at Zaporizhia NPP
16 June, 2023
Following a day’s delay, IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi final reached the Zaporizhia NPP (ZNPP) on 15 June, accompanying the eighth rotation of the Support & Assistance Mission to Zaporizhia (ISAMZ) which has been permanently stationed at the plant since September 2022. Grossi has strengthened the mission replacing two inspectors with four – specialists from Austria, France, South Korea, and Morocco.

More US DOE funding for commercial fusion
07 June, 2023
The US Department of Energy (DOE) has announced US$46M in funding for eight companies proposing designs and research & development for fusion power plants. This funding from the Milestone-Based Fusion Development Program aims to “solidify US leadership in fusion commercialisation”.

New value from fusion neutrons
07 June, 2023
Despite major breakthroughs, cost-effective energy from fusion reactors remains elusive. Nonetheless, commercial fusion is already here to stay. Greg Piefer, founder and CEO of SHINE Technologies, tells NEI about the business case.

PEJ signs agreement with US consortium to design and build NPP in Pomerania
31 May, 2023
An agreement has been signed by state-owned Polish utility Polskie Elektrownie Jadrowe (PEJ) with a consortium of US Westinghouse and Bechtel, which is being set up to design and build a NPP in Pomerania. The agreement, which sets out the rules for cooperation between PEJ and the Westinghouse-Bechtel consortium, is the result of intensive negotiations in recent months. These rules will apply to subsequent commercial contracts for the construction of a nuclear power plant in Pomerania.

Helion announces first fusion energy purchase agreement with Microsoft
16 May, 2023
US fusion energy tech startup Helion Energy has signed an agreement to provide Microsoft with electricity from its first fusion power plant. Constellation will serve as the power marketer and will manage transmission for the project. Helion said the plant is expected to be online by 2028 and will target power generation of 50 MW or more after a one-year ramp up period. The companies did not disclose financial or timing details of the power purchase agreement, or which Microsoft facilities would get fusion-generated electricity.

Hungary confirms no changes in Paks II contract
09 May, 2023
Hungarian Foreign Affairs & Trade Minister Péter Szijjártó has confirmed that the modifications made to the contract for construction of the Paks II NPP in April represent only minor technical changes. He told a press conference that “In both the financing and construction contracts, we agreed with the Russian partner [Rosatom] on amendments to Paks II. These related to the structure of the investment and the executor but left the project company untouched.”

Upgrade at Brookhaven National Lab increases actinium-225 production
28 April, 2023
Following recent upgrades, the medical isotope facilities at the US Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) is now producing actinium-225 (Ac-225) and shipping it directly to customers. Ac-225 is considered to have great potential in the treatment of cancer. It emits alpha particles, which can kill cancerous cells at short range is attach to molecules that target tumours. Ac-225 can also be used to generate bismuth-213, another alpha-emitter.

First fuel delivered to Türkiye’s Akkuyu NPP
27 April, 2023
A ceremony marking the delivery of the first batch of nuclear fuel for Türkiye’s Akkuyu NPP has taken place at the construction site. This event officially signals the entry of the Republic of Türkiye into the community of countries developing nuclear generation technologies on their territory. Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attended by video conference. IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi, Turkish Minister of Energy & Natural Resources Fatih Dönmez, and Rosatom Director General Alexei Likhachev addressed the ceremony directly.

Plotting a path to supply chain resilience
27 April, 2023
Growing concerns that a lack of supply chain resilience could curtail plans for nuclear new build is prompting action from multiple stakeholders, but the complexity of the global nuclear sector is such that no single solution could ever work.