Nuclear Power Today articles from August 2004

Nuclear Power Today archives from August 2004

Consultants File Petition With NRC Concerning Vermont Yankee.(Nuclear Regulatory Commission)(Brief Article)
August 2, 2004... Nuclear safety consultant Arnold Gundersen and energy consultant Paul Blanch recently filed a 2.206 petition with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) relating to the proposed reactor power boost at the Vermont Yankee nuclear power station....

NRC Suggests Worker Improvement Programs at CA Nuclear Plant.(Nuclear Regulatory Commission)(Brief Article)
August 2, 2004... Local California newspaper The Tribune recently reported that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) met last week with San Luis Obispo, CA-based Diablo Canyon nuclear plant owners Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) to address problems at...

Union Fenosa to Shut Down Zorita Nuclear Plant.(Brief Article)
August 2, 2004... Agence France-Press (AFP) recently reported that Spanish energy business group Union Fenosa has announced plans to cease operations at its 36-year-old nuclear power facility in Zorita, Spain by April 30, 2006. According to AFP, while Union...

Nuclear Management to Cut Jobs at Midwest Power Plants.(Brief Article)
August 3, 2004... Local Minnesota newspaper the Star Tribune recently reported that Midwest nuclear power plant operator Nuclear Management Company plans to eliminate between 500 and 700 jobs over the next six years. According to the paper, a Nuclear...

KY Celebrates Groundbreaking of Nuclear Recycling Facility.(Kentucky)(Brief Article)
August 3, 2004... The Department of Energy (DOE) and government officials in Kentucky recently celebrated the groundbreaking of a new depleted uranium hexafluoride (DUF6) conversion plant in Paducah, KY. According to DOE, the nuclear waste recycling...

Pakistani Government Approves New Nuclear Plant Project.(National Nuclear Corporation, Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission)(Brief Article)
August 3, 2004... Gulf Daily News recently reported that the Pakistani government has officially approved plans for the construction of a new $874-million, 300-megawatt nuclear power plant at Chashma along the Indus River in Punjab. According to the paper,...

NRC Proposes $24,000 Fine Against Westinghouse.(Brief Article)
August 4, 2004... The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) announced last week it intends to fine Westinghouse Electric Company $24,000 for alleged safety violations at its Columbia, SC, commercial nuclear fuel plant. The proposed penalty is in response to...

VT Panel to Request Hearing Before NRC in Yankee Plant Case.(Nuclear Regulatory Commission)(Brattleboro Reformer)(Brief Article)
August 4, 2004... Local Vermont newspaper the Brattleboro Reformer recently reported that state Department of Public Service commissioner David O'Brien affirmed last week during a Vermont Nuclear State Advisory Panel meeting that the state plans to request a...

US Enrichment Corporation to Acquire NAC International.(Brief Article)
August 4, 2004... The United States Enrichment Corporation (USEC) recently announced it has agreed to purchase Pinnacle West Capital Corporation subsidiary NAC International, a provider of spent fuel storage solutions, nuclear material transportation and fuel...

Investigators Identify Cause of Hanford Station Shutdown.(Brief Article)
August 4, 2004... The Associated Press (AP) recently reported that investigators have identified the cause of late last week's automatic shutdown at the Hanford Nuclear Site's Columbia Generating Station. According to AP, Energy Northwest spokesperson Gary...

NRC Issues Preliminary Finding on Mixed-oxide Testing.(mixed-oxide )(Brief Article)
August 5, 2004... The Associated Press (AP) recently reported that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued a preliminary finding allowing Duke Power to test the new fuel mixed-oxide (MOX), a combination of uranium oxide and plutonium oxide, at its...

NRC Publishes Data on Possible Yucca Mountain Hearing.(Brief Article)
August 5, 2004... The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) announced last week it has published documentary data relating to a possible future hearing to discuss a Department of Energy (DOE) plan to build a high-level radioactive waste repository at Yucca...

Progressive Magazine Addresses Nuclear Plant Fire Risk.(Nuclear Information and Resource Service )(Brief Article)
August 5, 2004... The Nuclear Information and Resource Service (NIRS) recently reported that the cover story for the August issue of The Progressive magazine, titled "Fire Hazard: Bush Leaves Nuclear Plants at Risk," focuses on "the lack of federal oversight and...

NRC Rejects Arguments to Stop Relicense of Millstone.(Connecticut Coalition Against Millstone)(Brief Article)
August 6, 2004... Local Connecticut newspaper The Day recently reported that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's (NRC) Atomic Safety and Licensing Board has rejected Connecticut Coalition Against Millstone's (CCAM) challenge of the proposed license renewal of...

U.S., Russian Lab Directors Advocate Nuclear Expansion.(Russian scientific nuclear organizations)(Brief Article)
August 6, 2004... The National Nuclear Security Administration's Sandia National Laboratories recently announced that representatives of seven Department of Energy (DOE) national laboratories and nine Russian scientific nuclear organizations have developed a...

Weekly Update.(Calendar)
August 6, 2004... 2004 UTILITY WORKING CONFERENCE -- PROMOTING THE NUCLEAR SAFETY CULTURE: REALIZING OPERATIONAL AND ECONOMIC GAINS, August 8-11, 2004, Amelia Island Plantation, Amelia Island, FL ECORAD 2004: THE SCIENTIFIC BASIS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION...

NRC Curbs Release of Reactor Security Data.(Brief Article)
August 9, 2004... Citing a desire to restrict potential terrorists' access to information on the nation's nuclear infrastructure, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) announced last week that certain information in the agency's ongoing reactor security review...

Ohio Nuclear Power Plant Shuts Down During Testing.(Brief Article)
August 9, 2004... The Associated Press (AP) recently reported that FirstEnergy Corporation's Davis-Besse nuclear power plant near Toledo, Ohio unexpectedly shut down last week during testing. According to AP, a Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)...

PUC to Hear PG&E Request for Funds to Repair Diablo Canyon.(Brief Article)
August 9, 2004... The San Francisco Chronicle recently reported that the California Public Utilities Commission (PUC) is scheduled to hear next month Pacific Gas and Electric Company's (PG&E) request to increase monthly ratepayer bills by nearly two percent in...

U.S. Appeals Court Says Utah Not Able to Regulate Nuclear Waste.(Brief Article)
August 10, 2004... Local Utah newspaper the Deseret Morning News recently reported that the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled late last week that only the federal government is authorized to regulate nuclear waste storage. According to the paper, Utah...

Hanford Nuclear Cleanup Worker Exposed to High-level Radiation.(Brief Article)
August 10, 2004... The Seattle Times recently reported that a worker at CH2M Hill's Hanford nuclear cleanup site was exposed to levels of 22 radiation equivalent men (rem), seven rem above the Department of Energy's (DOE) annual permissible amount, while removing...

British Energy Reports Decline in Nuclear Plant Safety Standards.(Brief Article)
August 10, 2004... Reuters recently reported that nuclear power producer British Energy has announced a decline in the company's safety standards since last year. According to Reuters, British Energy, which owns eight nuclear stations in the U.K. and...

Pakistani President Pledges to Support Nuclear Programs.(Brief Article)
August 10, 2004... The United Arab Emirates-based newspaper Khaleej Times recently reported that Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf announced at a Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) presentation last week that the government would continue to work on...

NRC Inspection Team Begins Work at VT Nuclear Plant.(Brief Article)
August 11, 2004... The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) recently announced that a team of eight inspectors, including three contractors, has begun performing an engineering design inspection at the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in Vernon, VT. ...

NRC Denies Contentions About Entergy Nuclear Plant.(Nuclear Regulatory Commission)(Nuclear Information and Resource Service)(NAACP-Clairborne County)(Sierra Club)
August 11, 2004... The Nuclear Information and Resource Service (NIRS), together with the NAACP-Clairborne County, Public Citizen, and the Mississippi Chapter of the Sierra Club, recently announced that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's (NRC) Atomic Safety...

Steam Leak at Japanese Nuclear Plant Kills Four, Injures Seven.(Brief Article)
August 11, 2004... The Associated Press (AP) recently reported that a non-radioactive steam leak at Kansai Electric Power's nuclear power plant in Mihama, Japan killed four workers and injured seven others earlier this week. According to AP, a Kansai...

Coalition Petitions NRC to Address Reactor Vulnerability.(Nuclear Regulatory Commission)(Brief Article)
August 12, 2004... Nonprofit public interest organization Public Citizen recently announced that a coalition of 45 national, regional and local environmental, public interest and nuclear watchdog organizations has petitioned the Nuclear Regulatory Commission...

Exelon, DOJ Reach Nuclear Fuel Storage Settlement.(Department of Justice)(Reimbursement of Storage Costs)(Brief Article)
August 12, 2004... Exelon Corporation recently announced it has reached a settlement agreement with the Department of Justice (DOJ) under which the government will reimburse Exelon for costs associated with the storage of spent fuel at the company's nuclear...

Union Threatens Strike at Yankee Nuclear Plant in VT.(Brief Article)
August 12, 2004... Local Vermont newspaper the Brattleboro Reformer recently reported that the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers has authorized union members employed at Entergy Corporation's Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant to go on strike at...

New Nuclear Reactor Introduced in Ukraine.(Brief Article)
August 12, 2004... The Associated Press (AP) recently reported that the Ukraine has launched reactor No. 2 at the Khmelnitskyi nuclear plant in the western part of the country. According to AP, another new reactor at the Rivne nuclear facility is scheduled...

John Kerry Promises to Keep Yucca Free of Nuclear Waste.(Brief Article)
August 13, 2004... Reuters recently reported that Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry promised during a speech in Nevada earlier this week that he would not allow the state's Yucca Mountain to become a dump for nuclear waste. According to Reuters,...

NRC Appoints New Senior Resident Inspectors at Three Plants.(Brief Article)
August 13, 2004... The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) recently announced the appointment of a new senior resident inspector at each of the following nuclear facilities -- the Summer nuclear power plant near Jenkinsville, SC; the Surry nuclear power station...

Former CNSC Regulator Takes New Job With OPG.(Brief Article)
August 13, 2004... The Toronto Star recently reported that former Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) power reactor regulation director-general Jim Blyth has begun working for Ontario Power Generation, Inc. (OPG) as the company's new director of engineering...

Weekly Update.(Calendar)
August 13, 2004... ECORAD 2004: THE SCIENTIFIC BASIS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGAINST RADIOACTIVITY, September 6-10, 2004, The Congress Center, Aiz-en-Provence, France INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON NUCLEAR KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT: STRATEGIES, INFORMATION...

NRC Appoints New Senior Inspector at WA Nuclear Plant.(Brief Article)
August 16, 2004... The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) recently announced the appointment of Zachary Dunham as the senior resident inspector at the Columbia Generating Station in Washington state. Dunham has been a resident inspector at the site for more...

NRC Hires Team to Test Progress Energy Nuclear Plant in FL.(Brief Article)
August 16, 2004... Local Florida newspaper the St. Petersburg Times recently reported that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) plans to test the security of Progress Energy Corporation's nuclear power plant in Crystal River, FL later this year. According...

Local PA Board Approves Security Measures for Nuclear Plant.(Limerick Board of Supervisors)(Brief Article)
August 16, 2004... Local Pennsylvania newspaper The Mercury recently reported that officials with Exelon Nuclear's Limerick Generating Station have received approval from the Limerick Board of Supervisors to implement new security measures around the facility....

Nebraska, CIC Settle Low-level Nuclear Waste Lawsuit.(Central Interstate Low-level Radioactive Waste Commission)(Brief Article)
August 17, 2004... Nebraska governor Mike Johanns and state attorney general Jon Bruning last week announced a settlement reached between the state and the Central Interstate Low-level Radioactive Waste Commission (CIC) that releases Nebraska from an obligation...

Japan Requires Stricter Regulations for Nuclear Safety.(Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency)(Brief Article)
August 17, 2004... The Associated Press (AP) recently reported that in light of last week's accident at the Mihama nuclear power plant in western Japan, in which a cooling pipe explosion caused the deaths of four workers, Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety...

Russia Assists China With Tianwan Atomic Energy Plant.
August 17, 2004... BBC recently reported that Federal Atomic Energy Agency of the Russian Federation head Aleksandr Rumyantsev has revealed that Russia's technical assistance has helped China complete pre-commissioning work for the first power unit of the Tianwan...

NRC Confirms Nuclear Plants' Operational Preparedness.(Nuclear Regulatory Commission)(Brief Article)
August 18, 2004... The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) recently announced that the Department of Energy (DOE) has issued a follow-up report on action taken to reduce blackout risk following the August 14, 2003 electric grid outage. In response to last...

Kansai Electric to Shut Down All Nuclear Plants for Testing.(Brief Article)
August 18, 2004... Japan's Kansai Electric Power Company recently announced that due to last week's accident at its Mihama Nuclear Power Station Unit 3, the Fukui prefectural government has requested that the company shut down all of its nuclear power plants and...

DOE, ANS to Host ANES 2004 in Miami Beach, FL.(Department of Energy)(American Nuclear Society)(Americas Nuclear Energy Symposium)(Brief Article)
August 18, 2004... The Department of Energy (DOE) and the American Nuclear Society (ANS) will host the Americas Nuclear Energy Symposium (ANES) 2004, with coordination by the Hemispheric Center for Environmental Technology at Florida International University,...

SC Senator Criticizes Kerry's Stance on Yucca Mountain.(South Carolina)(Brief Article)
August 18, 2004... Local South Carolina newspaper The State recently reported that U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) has criticized democratic presidential candidate John Kerry's position opposing the burying of nuclear waste at Nevada's Yucca Mountain, claiming...

Environmental Group Criticizes NRC Regulation of FirstEnergy.(Nuclear Regulatory Commission)(Environmental group Ohio Citizen Action)(Brief Article)
August 19, 2004... Environmental group Ohio Citizen Action recently released a letter written to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's (NRC) region III administrator James Caldwell in which the group criticizes the NRC for its lenient regulation of FirstEnergy...

Local NE Tribe Reveals Prior Nuclear Waste Site Proposal.(Central Interstate Low-level Radioactive Waste Commission)
August 19, 2004... Local Nebraska newspaper the Lincoln Journal Star recently reported that Mark Peniska, chairman of the Native American Ponca Tribe revealed last week that, prior to the settlement reached between the state and the Central Interstate Low-level...

PG&E Updates Details on Nuclear Fuel Rod Segment Search.(Pacific Gas and Electric )(Brief Article)
August 20, 2004... Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) recently reported that it has updated the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) on the status of a search for missing nuclear fuel rod segments at the Humboldt Bay, CA power plant. PG&E said inconsistencies in...

Study Compares Nuclear, Natural Gas Hydrogen Production.(Bellona Foundation)(Norwegian University of Science and Technology's Institute for Industrial Ecology)(Brief Article)
August 20, 2004... The environmental group Bellona Foundation recently reported on a study issued by the Norwegian University of Science and Technology's Institute for Industrial Ecology, titled "FISSION OR FOSSIL? A Comparative Hybrid Life Cycle Assessment of...

Waterproofing Work Underway at Kola Nuclear Plant.(Brief Article)
August 20, 2004... Russian news agency Novosti recently reported that German and Russian technicians are working to improve waterproofing at the Kola nuclear power facility in Murmansk. The facility's administration said waterproofing enhancements in the...

DOE Awards Nuclear Research, Technology Grants.(Brief Article)
August 20, 2004... The Department of Energy (DOE) recently announced that 47 Nuclear Engineering Education Research grants will be awarded to 28 universities to allow professors and students to conduct "innovative and state-of-the-art" nuclear engineering...

Weekly Update.(Brief Article)
August 20, 2004... ECORAD 2004: THE SCIENTIFIC BASIS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGAINST RADIOACTIVITY, September 6-10, 2004, The Congress Center, Aiz-en-Provence, France INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON NUCLEAR KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT: STRATEGIES, INFORMATION...

NRC Rejects Citizens' Petition to Stop Reopening of Davis-Besse.(Cleveland Plain Dealer)(Nuclear Regulatory Commission)(Brief Article)
August 23, 2004... The Cleveland Plain Dealer recently reported that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has rejected a petition from four people living near FirstEnergy Corporation's Davis-Besse nuclear power plant charging the facility with failing to...

Iran Asserts Bushehr Reactor Not for Weapon Development.(Brief Article)
August 23, 2004... The Associated Press (AP) recently reported that Iran has threatened to decimate Israel's Dimona nuclear reactor, where Iranian officials contend Israel actually manufactures nuclear weapons, if Israel attacks Iran's Bushehr reactor, where both...

Philippine Official Says Nuclear Option Should Stay on Table.(Vincent Perez)(Brief Article)
August 23, 2004... The Philippine Star recently reported that Philippine energy secretary Vincent Perez said last week that despite popular sentiment against nuclear power, the federal government should keep the nuclear option open, particularly in the face of...

NRC Denies Hearing Extension Request for Vermont Yankee.(Nuclear Regulatory Commission)(Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Corp.)(Brief Article)
August 24, 2004... The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) recently denied requests for an extension of the deadline to request a hearing on Entergy Nuclear's request for staff review of a 20-percent extended power uprate (EPU) for the Vermont Yankee nuclear...

Kepco to Shut Down More Reactors for Pipe Inspections.(Kansai Electric Power Company Inc.)(Takahama Nuclear Power Plant)(Oi Nuclear Power Plant)(Brief Article)
August 24, 2004... The Japan Times recently reported that Kansai Electric Power Company (Kepco) said last week it failed to complete pipe inspections at 11 designated points at the No. 3 and No. 4 reactors at the Takahama Nuclear Power Plant and at the No. 3...

NRC Special Inspection Team to Evaluate Palo Verde Incident.(Nuclear Regulatory Commission)(Brief Article)
August 25, 2004... The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) announced last week it has created a special inspection team to assess the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station's response to an incident last month involving the facility's emergency core cooling...

Union Workers at Vermont Yankee Sign Contract With Entergy.(Entergy Nuclear Inc.)(Brief Article)
August 25, 2004... The Associated Press (AP) recently reported that union workers from the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant signed a three-year contract last week with the plant's owner Entergy Nuclear. According to AP, the International Brotherhood of Electrical...

Japanese Nuclear Agency Reports on Additional Pipe Problems.(Japanese Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency)(Brief Article)
August 25, 2004... The Japan Times recently reported that the Japanese Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA) reported during a meeting earlier this month of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry's (METI) Advisory Committee for Natural Resources and...

NRC Releases Statement on Environmental Justice.(environmental interests.)(Brief Article)
August 26, 2004... The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) released a statement this week acknowledging that some of its decisions may disproportionately impact minority and low-income communities, noting that its regulatory and licensing actions should fall...

Pickering B Nuclear Plant Requires Longer, Costly Repairs.(costs and expences senario.)(Brief Article)
August 26, 2004... Canadian newspaper the Toronto Star recently reported that Ontario Power Generation, Inc. (OPG) will need to spend approximately $250 million to install backup generators at its Pickering B nuclear power plant. According to the paper,...

Non-aligned Countries Seek Freedom for Nuclear Development.(Brief Article)
August 26, 2004... Iran's Mehr News Agency (MNA) recently reported that representatives from member states of the Movement of Non-aligned Countries passed a declaration late last week during a meeting in Durban, South Africa calling for the unchallenged right to...

NRC Ramps Up Investigation of Davis-Besse Nuclear Plant.(Nuclear Regulatory Commission)(Brief Article)
August 27, 2004... Nuclear Engineering International recently reported that while the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) recently commended Davis-Besse nuclear power plant operators for maintaining a safe level of operations at the facility for more than 100...

FENOC Completes Reorganization of Nuclear Power Plants.(FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Co.)(Brief Article)
August 27, 2004... FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Company (FENOC) recently announced it has completed the reorganization of its Beaver Valley Power Station in Shippingport, PA, Perry Nuclear Power Plant in Perry, OH and Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station in Oak...

Ontario Nuclear Plant Requires Inspections Earlier Than Planned.(Ontario Power Generation Inc.)(Brief Article)
August 27, 2004... The Globe and Mail recently reported that Ontario Power Generation, Inc. (OPG) noted in its most recent quarterly report that problems identified with the pressure tubes of four of the Pickering B nuclear power plant's reactors necessitate the...

Weekly Update.
August 27, 2004... ECORAD 2004: THE SCIENTIFIC BASIS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGAINST RADIOACTIVITY, September 6-10, 2004, The Congress Center, Aiz-en-Provence, France INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON NUCLEAR KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT: STRATEGIES, INFORMATION...

NEI Files Petition for Rehearing on Yucca Radiation Standard.(Nuclear Energy Institute)(Brief Article)
August 30, 2004... The Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI) last week filed a formal petition for rehearing with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit seeking review of a recent decision on the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) compliance...

Columbia Nuclear Plant Back Online After July Shutdown.(Brief Article)
August 30, 2004... Energy Northwest recently announced that its Columbia Generation Station is back on line after nearly a month of inactivity following a steam control valve incident that triggered the plant's automatic shutdown procedure. Company officials...

Hungary Restarts Reactor at Nuclear Power Facility.(Brief Article)
August 30, 2004... The Associated Press (AP) recently reported that a spokesperson for Hungary's Paks nuclear power plant located south of Budapest said the facility's No. 2 reactor was restarted last week after being shut down for over one year. According...

Nuclear Facility Restarts in Armenia.(Brief Article)
August 31, 2004... Russian Information Agency (RIA) Novosti recently reported that the local Armenian nuclear power plant shut down on July 30 for routine capital repairs will resume operation on October 4 after its fourth turbine receives necessary repairs and...

Russian Official Says No Delay on Bushehr Operations.(Brief Article)
August 31, 2004... Reuters recently reported that Russian Atomic Energy Agency spokesperson Nikolai Shingaryov has repudiated Iranian nuclear official Asadollah Sabouri's statement of last week that the controversial Bushehr nuclear power plant project, which is...

Canadian Group Releases Report on Nuclear Waste Dialogues.(Brief Article)
August 31, 2004... Canada's Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) released a report last week that outlines the findings of a series of dialogues with citizens about how to treat spent fuel from the country's 22 commercial nuclear power plants. The...