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Agreement reached for Hanford clean-up
The US Department of Energy (DOE), Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology), and US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have announced a “landmark agreement” proposing “a realistic and achievable course for cleaning up millions of gallons of radioactive and chemical waste from large, underground tanks at the Hanford Site.”
Polish government endorses proposal to deploy Rolls-Royce SMRs
Rolls-Royce SMR welcomed the announcement by Polish industrial group, Industria (part of Industrial Development Agency JSC), that they have received the final government opinion required to progress the approval of an application for a Decision in Principle to build Rolls-Royce Small Modular Reactor (SMR) power plants in Poland.
L&H Industrial and BWXT to explore microreactor technology for industrial heat and power
L&H Industrial and BWXT Advanced Technologies have signed a Joint Development Agreement aimed at deploying microreactors to provide heat and power for industrial users. This collaborative effort will focus on the development and potential deployment of BWXT’s Advanced Nuclear Reactor (BANR) in cogeneration sets starting with Wyoming and its neighbouring states.
Fukushima ALPS treated water release progressing planned
The discharge of treated water from Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi NPP is progressing in accordance with the Implementation Plan approved by Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA), the Task Force set up by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has confirmed.
Grossi addresses World Energy Congress on first official visit to the Netherlands
IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi addressed the 26th World Energy Congress in the Netherlands organised by the World Energy Council (WEC). This year’s event, held in Rotterdam under the slogan “Redesigning Energy for People and Planet”, brought together 70 ministers from 150 countries, as well as some 7,000 international energy stakeholders.
Framatome breaks ground on project to expand Lynchburg site
Framatome has broken ground on a $50m expansion project at its Mill Ridge Road facility in Lynchburg, Virginia. The project includes expanding Framatome’s current footprint to accommodate over 500 new employees, refurbishing its nuclear training centre to support the next generation of small and advanced reactor technologies, modernising existing office spaces and conference rooms, and increasing capacity for an innovation and design school. The facility provides specialised training and tooling to service and maintain North America’s NPP fleet and develops solutions for advanced and small modular reactors.
Bruce B planned Vacuum Building Outage begins
Bruce Power has removed all four of Bruce B’s operating units from service for the generating station’s planned Vacuum Building Outage (VBO) in close collaboration and co-ordination with the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) and Hydro One.
Rolls-Royce revises plans for SMR pressure vessel factory
Rolls-Royce SMR has reportedly revised its plans to build two nuclear factories in the UK due ongoing delays in the government’s small modular reactor (SMR) design competition. In December 2023, six SMR designs were selected to progress to the next stage of a UK competition that forms a key part of government ambitions for up to a quarter of the country’s electricity to come from nuclear power by 2050. The designs chosen by Great British Nuclear – the government-backed body driving nuclear projects across the UK The winning bidders were EDF, GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy International, Holtec Britain Limited, NuScale Power, Rolls-Royce SMR and Westinghouse Electric Company UK The contracts were expected to be awarded in spring 2024 but this has now been postponed to June 2024 at the earliest.
IAEA experts assess damage to Zaporizhia training centre
Experts of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have continued to hear military activity in the region of the Zaporizhia NPP (ZNPP) but say there have been no reports of new drone attacks on the site over the past week. “We are not aware of any drone attacks since the reported incident one week ago, which is encouraging. However, we know from experience that the situation can take a sudden turn for the worse from one minute to the next. The situation remains highly unpredictable,” IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said.
G7 energy ministers reach understanding on coal but nuclear remains contentious
Energy and environment ministers from the Group of Seven (G7) countries meeting in Turin have reportedly reached a deal to shut down their coal-fired power plants in the first half of the 2030s. Italian energy minister Gilberto Pichetto Fratin, who is chairing the meeting said there is a technical agreement pending a final political decision.