3-9 July 2012
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT:
Switzerland's 'challenging' energy policy
3 July 2012
Switzerland faces many hurdles in its plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions while also phasing out its use of nuclear power, said the International Energy Agency, noting that: "The transition to a low-carbon economy is not for free."
NEW NUCLEAR:
WNU course concludes in China
6 July 2012
The annual World Nuclear University (WNU) short course in China closed last week, with 200 participants from all over the country attending. After five years in Beijing, it was held for the first time in southern Guangdong province.
Russia plans largest icebreaker
4 July 2012
RosAtomFlot has announced an open tender for the construction of the world's largest nuclear-powered icebreaker. The company plans to take delivery of the vessel by the end of 2017.
NUCLEAR POLICIES:
Ohi restart gives Japan breathing space
9 July 2012
The Japanese government has announced it will be able to scale back energy saving targets in some areas thanks to the restart of Kansai Electric's Ohi 3.
Belgian reactors learn their fate
5 July 2012
Nuclear plant operator Electrabel has reacted with dismay to a government announcement that two of the country's seven nuclear units will not get a previously promised ten-year licence extension.
New lease of life for Garoña
3 July 2012
Citing the plant's low-carbon power production and economic contribution, the Spanish government has wiped away a previous ruling to close the Garoña nuclear power plant in July 2013 - opening the possibility for it to operate until 2019.
UK nuclear support bounces back
3 July 2012
Support for nuclear energy as part of the UK's energy mix has increased over the last year with 63% agreeing that it has a role to play, an opinion poll commissioned by EDF Energy has found.
REGULATION & SAFETY:
Companies quizzed over yellowcake spill
9 July 2012
Nuclear regulators in the USA and Canada are investigating an incident at a Canadian uranium refinery when the lid of a drum containing uranium oxide from a plant in the USA blew off, leading to the exposure of three workers to airborne uranium.
Public trust rests with regulators
9 July 2012
Independent regulators should play a greater role in communicating the risks associated with energy generation and distribution because the government is not considered as an impartial source of information, according to a UK parliamentary committee.
Mkuju River boundary change
6 July 2012
UNESCO's World Heritage Committee has approved a boundary change to the Selous Reserve of Tanzania in a step towards development of the Mkuju River uranium property. The potential mine remains subject to a mining licence application by Uranium One.
Fukushima a disaster 'Made in Japan'
5 July 2012
The faults of every player in last year's Fukushima crisis have been laid out by a parliamentary commission. No organisation was singled-out as responsible - but rather Japanese culture itself. For the continuation of nuclear power in the country, regulation must go through an "essential transformation process."
Ohi producing power again
5 July 2012
Japan has generated its first nuclear electricity in two months after unit 3 of the Ohi plant began supplying power to the grid on 5 July. While unit 4 of the plant is expected to resume operation by the end of the month, it is not yet known when the country's other idled reactors will restart.
CORPORATE:
Partial ruling on Olkiluoto 3
6 July 2012
Finland's Teollisuuden Voima Oyj (TVO) must release €125 million ($155 million) of withheld payments to the Areva-Siemens consortium, an international arbitration court has ruled. A ruling on the delay and cost overruns of the Olkiluoto EPR construction project is still pending.
Duke expands its fiefdom
4 July 2012
The merger of Duke Energy and Progress Energy is complete, resulting in a massive nuclear utility boasting 7.1 million customers in the southeast and midwest USA.
