Will the nuclear fuel bank open for business?

Financing may dry up if nations don't act

On September 20, U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu brought a suitcase full of carrots and sticks to the annual meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Getting his luggage through airport security and customs was easy.

The hard part is getting the other nations of the world to listen to reason. The main issue at hand is the establishment of an international fuel bank for commercial nuclear reactors.

The main carrot is $50 million the United States has pledged to set up a nuclear fuel bank so that other nations that want civilian nuclear energy don’t have to build uranium enrichment plants.

This is an important step in controlling dual-use technology that can also be used to make weapons grade materials.

The main stick is that if the IAEA doesn't get off the dime and set up the fuel bank soon, the U.S. will withdraw the pledge.

Read all about it exclusively at the ANS Nuclear Cafe online now.

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Ghosts of SL-1 put to rest

My pointer to a post by Rod Adams on an accessible technical explanation of what went wrong

On a bitter cold night January 3, 1961, a terrible accident occurred on the Arco desert 45 miles west of Idaho Falls, ID.

Three men were killed in an accident involving a small experimental nuclear reactor. No one else was injured, but a plume of radioactivity made its way south as far as American Falls.

To this day the legacy of the accident is still felt amidst the stark volcanic plain that is now home to the Idaho National Laboratory, but back then was called the National Reactor Testing Station located in the semi-mythical town of Scoville, ID.

One of the ghosts that haunts the place is a legend that it wasn’t an accident at all, but rather a murder-suicide over love gone wrong with two men wanting the same woman. This is a much more fascinating reason to ascribe to the cause of the deadly flash of steam that took place in the middle of the night.

I have spent plenty of time getting the dust of “the site” embedded in my shoes. I have spoken with people, who were there at the time, who swear the murder suicide story (over a woman) is true. The proof for their story died with the victims.

Control rods are root cause of the accident

John Horan, who was one of the first health physics workers on the accident scene, talked with me at length about the accident in 1998, a year before he died. He did not subscribe to the murder suicide theory though he did have strong opinions about the accident and its aftermath.

He said the accident occurred because the control rod did not move smoothly in and out of the reactor core. The design flaw was in the mechanism they moved in – slots or guides.

It was a small R&D reactor. The top of the core was no bigger than the space of two manhole covers. The first worker who was killed was literally standing on the top of the core trying to move a stuck control rod by hand.

When he freed it from the stuck position, the reactor went critical and the pressure of steam beneath was also released shooting the rod out of its guide hole like an explosive projectile. The worker was killed instantly impaling him on the ceiling of the reactor building.

The SL-1 did not have a containment structure having been deemed too small to need one.

The accident took place as the workers on back shift were reconnecting the control rod to a drive mechanism when the reactor instantly flashed all the water in the core to steam. In the accident investigation,

General Electric, which had built the reactor, said that no other explanation, e.g. sudden manual withdrawal of the control rod, could have caused the reactor to flash.

Rod Adams explains the accident

In a blog post for 10/6/10 at Atomic Insights, Rod Adams has a detailed explanation of the cause of the accident. No love triangle is involved, just failed machinery and human error.

Please take a few minutes to read Rod’s post because the more people who do, the more it will give closure to all the ghosts that were created so many years ago.

In this way these spirits from years gone by will now depart the earth and go to a place of peace where neither man nor any of his creations ever return.

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Spain’s erratic energy policy

The government can’t make up its mind to support gas, solar, nuclear, or none of the above

(NucNet contributed to this report.) Spain is an energy island in Europe with less than 2% of its power coming across the border from France. This fact makes energy policy a critical success factor in forging the economic future of the country where unemployment is running at record high levels and the government’s credit rating has tanked.

These facts of life haven’t prevented the current Spanish government from dithering itself into inaction over which way to invest, or not, in new electricity generation capacity.

Spain doesn’t have many energy options primarily because it is one of Europe’s financial basket cases along with Greece and Ireland. A recent financial study indicates the country will face a shortage of investment capital for new energy projects including new base load generation and improvements to the nation’s electrical grid.

The New York Times reported Sept 22 that a gap between the regulated rates paid for electricity in Spain and what it costs to generate it will reach $27 billion by the end of the year. According to Gonzalo Diaz-Rato, a partner at Gala Fund Management, “the Spanish government’s energy strategy has been erratic and incoherent.”

“The government wants to increase its green credentials by paying unsustainable subsidies to renewable producers and talking tough to the nuclear lobby, be price-friendly to end customers who are also the voters, while also supporting coal producers, even if that is economically unfeasible and not environmentally friendly.”

At one time Spain was the darling of Europe when it came to solar energy. With abundant sunshine, and massive subsidies, the grow of solar energy surpassed expectations (50,000 installations; a $16 billion market) until the government realized it could no longer afford massive subsidies to the industry. It slammed on the brakes and spooked investors into taking their money overseas.

Spain’s about face with termination of massive subsidies for solar projects has “sent a shiver through investors” according to a Citigroup report. The analysis says future uncertainty about the government’s staying power with energy policy will raise the cost of capital for all new projects.

The government’s inability to come to terms with energy reality has pushed investment resources for solar and nuclear projects overseas. At a time when it needs help at home, the government seems to be doing just about everything it can to send those resources away.

Nuclear policy shifts into reverse

In the nuclear arena, the government played politics with the relicensing of one of its reactors. the Garona plant, renewing the license for just four years despite a safety evaluation from the regulatory agency that approved it for ten.

According to a review of Spain’s nuclear industry by the World Nuclear Organization

"License renewal for the Santa Maria de Garona plant came up for review in 2009. In June 2010 the Nuclear Safety Council (CSN) recommended that a 10-year extension be granted, to 2019. The CSN said that plant owner and operator Nuclenor had implemented a comprehensive work program to keep the 40-year old reactor fully serviceable, having spent some EUR 155 million on it."

The Socialist government, with a policy of closing down Spanish nuclear plants as early as possible, granted only a four-year license extension, to 2013.

Spain had an enviable track record of effective management of its reactors with uprates in power that added 519 MW to its nine reactors. Whether another 300 MW in planned uprates takes place is up in the air.

Deer in the headlights

It’s not that the nation’s political leaders have failed to take notice. The problem appears to be an inability to move in any direction for a sustained period of time in order to make a difference. The development of energy proposals got new emphasis this week with a series of meeting in the lower house of parliament.

The meeting is the latest in a series of sessions that have taken place over the past year which considered more than 60 proposals. That number was reduced to 23 of which agreement has been reached on just 9 provisions of a new national energy policy.

The energy study group’s unfinished consensus document punted policy about nuclear reactors five years into the future. The reason is that none of the nation’s nine nuclear reactors (7.5 Gwe) will reach 40 years years of operation by then.

Current government policy calls for closure and decommissioning at that point. If the government wants new reactors, it must start planning for them now, and not when it is closing down the current fleet.

Nuclear energy supplies about 20% of the energy mix. Last May, Maria Teresa Dominguez of the Spanish nuclear industry group Foro Nuclear, told the parliamentary study group Spain needs between 2.6-3.0 Gwe of new nuclear generation capacity. It appears no one was listening.

Opportunities abound abroad

While the government has not taken any steps to address the issue and none of the Spanish utilities have shown any interest in building new domestic reactors. it hasn’t stopped them from going overseas to build new energy projects.

One of the largest, Iberdrola is partners with utilities in the U.K. as part of that nation’s new build and is seeking contracts with Jordan. It will invest $7.2 billion in energy projects on the U.S.,which is about the cost of a new reactor in Spain. The net effect of Spain’s dithering is to push investors and expertise to other countries to the detriment of its own energy security.

Despite an overtly hostile view of nuclear energy, the country cannot do without its nuclear reactors. This is a reality check on the populist urges of the current political leadership. However, neither party has any interest in building new reactors.

Prior coverage on this blog

• May 26, 2010 Spain plays politics with reactor re-licensing

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ANS Social Media Meet-up Nov 9th

The second annual session has an offical host and an exclusive sponsor

A meet-up of anyone attending the ANS winter meeting in Las Vegas who is interested in the use of social media in the nuclear industry will be held Tuesday Nov 9th, from 6-9 PM at the Riviera Hotel & Casino, in the Royal 3 room (hotel interactive map).

The ANS Public Information Committee is the official host of the meeting and exclusive sponsorship is provided by the Idaho National Laboratory.

This is the second time such a meeting has been held. At the 2009 ANS Winter Meeting held in Washington, D.C., last November, we had a informal and successful meet-up of 45 people interested in discussing social media.

The plan this year is to have an informal discussion about how social media, including blogs, instant messages, and web services are shaping public perceptions of the nuclear energy industry. Also, this is an opportunity to meet others who work with these tools in the nuclear industry.

"The social media initiatives undertaken by the American Nuclear Society over the past year have broadened ANS nuclear outreach efforts and engaged new audiences," said Candace Davison, ANS Public Information Committee Chair.

"We are excited about the recent launch of the ANS Nuclear Cafe blog and hope that ANS members will become daily readers and active participants."

"Investing in our social media program at the Idaho National Laboratory, has had big returns for us. Whether it is posting a news tip on Twitter, recruiting a young engineer on Facebook, or building a relationship with a science blogger, we have seen positive results.” said Amy Lientz, Director of Communications and Governmental Affairs at INL.

“We are excited to sponsor this year's social media event and meet in person many of the folks behind the cyber-curtain."

What a difference a year makes

A lot has taken place in the past year. ANS has gotten into social media with the launch September 1 of its blog at the ANS Nuclear Cafe. Since January 2010, ANS has supported a listserv based discussion forum on social media's impact on nuclear energy which has over 100 people signed up.

Also, thanks to the organizing skills of Brian Wang at Next Big Future, an informal team of nuclear bloggers is publishing a Carnival of Nuclear Energy blogs every week. It is now in its 20th edition.

National laboratories and nuclear utilities are using Facebook and other social media tools. In 2010 there are half a dozen new nuclear blogs.

Meeting agenda

The agenda for the meeting on Nov 9 starts with meet & greet with light refreshments from 6:00-6:30 PM. This will be followed by a round robin discussion about current topics in social media and how they impact the nuclear industry.

One of the things people will want to hear from you is what you've been doing in the past year with social media in the nuclear industry. Bring your story to Las Vegas!

Plus there are two sessions on communications, advocacy, and social media taking place Wednesday afternoon Nov 10. See the ANS conference program for details.

If you have any questions, please contact me via email at djysrv@gmail.com or Twitter @djysrv

Please share this blog post with your friends and colleagues.

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Finally some good news about the UK new nuclear build

The Liberal Party signs up for the nation's energy future

It is good news when the foreign secretary of the U.K. government delivers a speech that is talking about the future of the nation's new nuclear build. William Hague (right) told the Council on Foreign Relations in New York Sept 27 the UK intends to build a new generation of nuclear power plants to replace the current fleet. (CFR transcript as delivered including Q&A)

The primary objective, Hague said, is to insure the U.K. meets its goals to reduce carbon emissions. (CFR video of speech)

"We will have from 2020 onward an expanding nuclear power sector . . . we are opening the door to build them."

Hague said the government sees "no other option" to building the new reactors given the carbon emissions that would come from new coal-fired or natural gas power plants.

Hague stressed the world must adopt a sense of urgency in addressing the issue of climate change.

Read the full text of this report on Hague’s speech and related developments exclusively at Cool Hand Nuke, a nuclear energy jobs portal and whole lot more.

Nuclear news roundup for Oct 1, 2010

Italy needs stability for new nuclear build

(NucNet) The chief executive officer of Italian utility Enel has said Sept 30 that the industry’s efforts to begin a new nuclear build program will prove “futile” if the initiative is halted by a future change in government.

Speaking on 28 September 2010 in a Bloomberg television interview, Fulvio Conti said that industry “must have guarantees in the current legislation” to prevent the country’s new nuclear program being stopped for political reasons in the future.

Energy analysts told Bloomberg that if Italy wobbles in its commitment to new nuclear projects, investors will get spooked and the cost of the plants will increase due to perceived higher risk of completing the projects. Carlo Stagnaro, of the think tank Bruno Leoni, told Bloomberg wire service Sept 28 success in project financing requires loan guarantees and government guarantees on the price of electricity from the plants.

Enel aims to build at least four Areva 1,600 MW EPR reactor units in Italy as part of a joint venture with Electricité de France. Mr Conti confirmed that the joint venture, Sviluppo Nucleare Italia, would be responsible for 50% of Italy’s new nuclear program, which foresees that a quarter of electricity generation needs will be met by nuclear power.

“For this half of the program, we are earmarking an overall budget in the next 15 to 20 years of 16 to 18 billion euro (22 to 25 billion US dollars), funded by the companies and operators, and possibly project finance.”

Mr Conti said that the availability of long-term contracts necessary for project planning was an issue, but he was “confident” that work on a new nuclear power plant could be started in late 2014 to early 2015. He said the first units could be completed by 2020.

He said new build was not a project for a single operator but for the country as a whole. Italy’s nuclear program had to be “well-explained to local communities” he said, and “all political parties” must subscribe to it.

Italy's local governments are famously opposed to new energy projects until the government pays them enough to accept it. The thousands of construction jobs that come with construction of each of the four reactors is a huge incentive to communities.

Italy’s nuclear program was scrapped following a referendum in 1987.
However, in July 2009 Italy’s parliament approved a package of legislation that gave the green light for a return to the use of nuclear energy. Last February, the government gave final approval to a decree setting out steps for the construction of new units.

Short stack of news items

Mexico delays new build - Bloomberg wire service reported Sept 14 that Mexico is pushing back by at least two years a decision to build one or more new reactors. The reason is the lower price of natural gas which is expected to continue. Mexico is a leading producer of oil and gas.

Mexican energy planners have seen natural gas prices from from $13 per million BTU to less than $4/MBtu. However, Eugenio Laris, investment director for the Mexican state-owned power utility, told Bloomberg wire service the firm has plans for as many as 10 new reactors, but may not build any of them as long as gas stays cheap.

Vietnam gets cost estimate - Dow Jones News Wires reported Sept 28 that the cost of new reactors in Vietnam, 4 GWe of nuclear generation capacity, will be $12 billion. The project consists of two sites with two 1,000 MW plants each to be located in the southern coastal province of Ninh Thuan. The plants will be built under contract with Russia's atomic energy export agency.

China facing shortage of nuclear engineers - Reuters reported Sept 20 that China's rapid expansion of its nuclear energy sector is running up against a shortage of nuclear engineers. The country is building 28 new reactors.

Li Ganje, of China's National Nuclear Safety Administration, told Reuters the country is short of specialized talent and especially experienced engineers.

The China Nuclear Society reportedly said the country needs 5,000 new engineers a year for the next two decades. Currently, graduation rates from six Chinese universities are running at about 2,000 engineers/year.

Abu Dhabi will seek investors - Almost half the cost of a $20 billion project to build four new reactors in the UAE will be covered by debt financing according to a UAE newspaper. The Emirates National Energy Corp. appointed Credit Suisse as the financial advisor to the project.

The financing will be composed of export credits, loans, and government bonds sold to investors. Export credit agencies in South Korea, which won the contract, are expected to provide some of the financing.

According to the National, the government is raising the money because it is stretched thin relative to domestic infrastructure projects. For the first time the government is facing a deficit based on reduced revenues resulting from declining oil sales due to the global contraction of economic activity.

Dominion wants a partner - Dominion Resources, a Virginia-based nuclear utility, told the Bloomberg wire service Sept 28, it is looking for a financial partner to help it build a third reactor. Earlier this year Dominion jettisoned plans to use the 1,500 MW GE ESBWR in favor of a similar size reactor from Mitsubishi.

Progress may cancel Shearon Harris - The Raleigh, NC, News Observer, reported Sept 15 that Progress Energy may never build two new Westinghouse 1,100 MW nuclear reactors in North Carolina.

The utility said "slack demand" is behind the change in plans. Original estimates of the need for 2,100 MW of new power over the next ten years have been revised downward to just 550 MW. Instead, Progress said it might take a financial stake in another nuclear reactor project rather than build one on its own.

Santee Cooper may sell stake - Duke Energy may buy a stake in the V.C. Summer station buying it from Santee Cooper which is thinking of offloading some or all of its stake in the project. The Charlotte Business Journal reported Sept 29 Duke is looking at the 45% share in the twin 1,100 MW reactors, but has not made a decision.

Duke has stalled work on its William Lee nuclear project citing an increasingly hostile regulatory environment in North Carolina. The utility complained that the state regulatory agency is making it harder to recover the costs of build a new reactor while it is under construction.

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