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In Energy Policy Pivot, France Will Shutter 14 Nuclear Reactors

November 30, 2018

France will shut down 14 of its 58 nuclear reactors by 2035 as well its remaining four coal power plants by 2022, French President Emmanuel Macron said November 27 in a lengthy speech that sought to clarify the country’s future energy direction.

According to the World Nuclear Association, France’s nuclear power share has steadily expanded since 1974, just after the first oil shock. However, France has pondered reducing nuclear’s share of its total generating mix from about 75% since 2012, when former President François Hollande ran on an election pledge to cut the nuclear share to 50% by 2025.

In 2014, the the lower house of France’s parliament passed the so-called “Energy Transition for Green Growth” bill, which set a nuclear cap at 63.2 GWe, which meant reducing nuclear’s share to 50% by 2025. In 2015, the Senate amended the bill to remove the 63.2-GW nuclear cap, but that same year, the National Assembly approved a new bill reinstating the cap.…

Voters Back Nuclear Power, Phaseout by 2025 Nixed

November 28, 2018

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In a referendum held alongside local elections, the Taiwanese electorate voted overwhelmingly to abolish a stipulation in the country’s Electricity Act that called for all nuclear energy-based power-generating facilities to completely cease operations by 2025.

Many experts considered it a surprising victory for pro-nuclear activists. In January 2016, Taiwan’s Democratic Progressive Party garnered widespread support in elections, running on a platform that included the elimination of nuclear power by 2025. After the election, leaders quickly passed an amendment codifying the nuclear phaseout.

However, a blackout on August 15, 2017, apparently helped change many people’s views on nuclear power. The outage occurred when a contractor accidentally interrupted the gas supply to the 4,384-MW Tatan power station, Taiwan’s largest gas-fired plant. The interruption caused all six units at the site to shut down, and 6.6 million households and businesses across the island lost power for more than five hours. At the time, three of Taiwan’s six then-operational nuclear reactors were offline for maintenance.…

DOE Considers Subsidies Modeled on Renewables for Small Modular Nuclear Reactors

November 16, 2018

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State-imposed standards and financial incentives such as those used to spur widespread adoption of renewables technologies offer a promising model to address challenges to commercialize small modular reactors (SMRs), says a report by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Office of Nuclear Energy.

But to make a meaningful impact, nearly $ 10 billion in incentives will be needed to deploy 6 GW of SMR capacity by 2025, it acknowledges.

The report, “Examination of Federal Assistance in the Renewable Energy Market,” was prepared by Kutak Rock and Scully Capital under contract with the DOE and made public on November 15. It notes that while uncertainty attached to the rapidly evolving market environment is shadowing long-term investment decisions at electric utilities in the U.S, current trends in the power sector present an opportunity for SMR development “as a flexible, carbon-free baseload generation resource which can be built on a smaller scale than traditional nuclear plants.” However, efforts to commercialize SMR technologies have lagged owing to several challenges.…

TVA Extends Deadline for Bellefonte Nuclear Plant Deal

November 12, 2018

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A Tennessee businessman now has until the end of November to finalize a two-year-old purchase agreement for the unfinished Bellefonte nuclear power plant in Alabama.

The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), which began building the plant in 1974 but ended construction in 1988 amid a downturn in the nuclear power industry, on November 9 said it has extended the deadline in its agreement with Franklin Haney’s Nuclear Development LLC (NDLLC) from November 14 to November 30. Haney now has another 16 days to complete the agreement to buy the plant’s assets.

Haney last week said legal and regulatory issues have delayed the sale’s closure. The project also has been dogged by allegations of payments to secure federal government support. And one of the project’s potential electricity customers recently signaled it may back away from a deal to purchase power from the plant.

Haney, a real estate developer who grew his business by buying and building properties that he then leases to local, state, and federal government interests, was the highest bidder for Bellefonte’s assets in an auction in November 2016.…

Competitive Generators Look to the Supreme Court After Seventh Circuit Declines Rehearing on Nuclear Subsidies

October 12, 2018

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The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals has declined to rehear a case that challenges nuclear subsidies in Illinois, effectively dealing a blow to a group of competitive generators, which have fought the measure for several years.

In an order issued on October 9, the appellate court said its full judicial panel had voted to deny a September 29–filed petition from the Electric Power Supply Association (EPSA), a national trade association representing independent power producers and marketers, that urged it to rehear a case challenging the state’s zero emissions credit (ZEC) program under the Illinois Future Energy Jobs Act. In its petition, the group argued that the court erred or overlooked significant aspects of its case when the court issuedits final judgment on September 13.

The court’s decision, which essentially left the door open for states to subsidize nuclear generation, was hailed as a victory for Exelon Corp., which lobbied for the measure to protect its financially flailing nuclear assets.…

Nuclear Power Roundup: New Milestones Reached on Several Reactors

October 4, 2018

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A handful of nuclear power projects around the world completed notable achievements recently: Rostov 4 entered commercial operation, Tianwan 4 achieved first criticality, the Akademik Lomonosov floating nuclear power plant completed fuel loading, Leningrad II-1 received its commissioning permit, and the dome was installed on Karachi 3.

Rostov 4

Rostov Unit 4 was placed into commercial operation on September 28, three months ahead of schedule. The reactor is the last VVER-1000 type that will be constructed in Russia. However, Rosatom said the design incorporated some safety elements that are used in Generation 3+ power units.

“Rostov NPP [nuclear power plant] is the first NPP in the newest history where the so called straight-line construction that provides both adherence to deadlines and maximum effective use of materials and financial resources was revived. It is due to this type of construction [Rostov] NPP was constructed not only 3 months earlier, but with the high quality,” Director General of Rosenergoatom JSC Andrey Petrov said in a press release announcing the achievement.…