Platts - Friday, May 26, 2006 http://www.platts.com ------------ House passes bill approving funding for DOE nuclear program Washington (Platts)--25May2006 The House passed an energy and water funding bill in a 404-20 vote yesterday that left intact the Appropriations Committee recommendations on funding for DOE's nuclear energy programs in fiscal 2007. House members rejected a floor amendment by Democratic Representative Edward Markey of Massachusetts that would have cut another $40 million from the DOE Global Nuclear Energy Partnership program in FY-07, which begins October 1. GNEP will receive $120 million, $130 million below the budget request, under the bill. Also rejected was an amendment by Representative Shelley Berkley of Nevada that would have barred DOE from maintaining its website aimed at educating children about the nuclear power industry and about the DOE repository project at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. Berkley, a Democrat, asserted in her floor remarks that the cartoon character "Yucca Mountain Johnny" that is a central figure on the website misleads children into thinking the repository project and nuclear waste are safe. The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development is expected to consider its version of the House bill in June, according to a Senate staffer. For similar news, take a trial to Platts Nucleonics Week at http://nucweek.platts.com. ------------ Feasibility of new reactor in Argentina to be studied Washington (Platts)--25May2006 A feasibility study on a new Candu reactor in Argentina will be developed by Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd., utility Nucleoelectrica Argentina SA, and national nuclear agency Comision Nacional de Energia Atomica, AECL said today. The intent of the study is to recommend to the Argentinean government the construction of a new plant, AECL said. There is no timetable for completion of the study, said AECL spokesman Dale Coffin. The study was included in AECL's announcement that it signed a memorandum of agreement today with the utility and the agency for expanded nuclear cooperation. Projects planned under the MOU include developing a refurbishment program for Embalse, a Candu that began operating in 1984. ------------ Constuction of fusion energy test reactor could start in 2007 London (Platts)--25May2006 Construction of a large international fusion energy test reactor could begin in 2007 if governments of the seven participating partners ratify the joint implementation agreement, as expected, that ITER participants initialed May May 24 in Brussels. The agreement outlines participants' costs and responsibilities for the construction, operation, and decommissioning of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, or ITER, that will be built in Cadarache, France. Raymond Orbach, the director of DOE's Office of Science, represented the US at the initialing ceremony. During a teleconference with reporters, Orbach said the agreement caps US construction costs at $1.1 billion, 80% of which will involve in-kind contributions. The agreement now will be sent to Congress for a 120-day review. A burning plasma experiment will be the key focus of ITER's 10-year operations, according to DOE. Partners in the project are the European Union, China, India, Japan, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, and the US. For similar stories, request a free trial to Platts Nucleonics Week at http://www.platts.com/Request%20More%20Information/ ------------ Bush urges House to fully fund GNEP for FY-07 Washington (Platts)--24May2006 The Bush administration urged the House to fully fund DOE's Global Nuclear Energy Partnership program in fiscal 2007 and criticized appropriators' decision to eliminate all funds for DOE's mixed-oxide (MOX) fuel facility for the disposition of surplus weapons-grade plutonium. The White House Office of Management and Budget asserted in a statement today that the GNEP program would address minimizing the toxicity of waste slated for deep-geologic disposal; eliminate proliferation risks; and expand the use of nuclear power. OMB issued the statement as the House debated the energy and water funding bill for FY-07; the debate was still going on at press time. Regarding the MOX cut, OMB added that changing the disposition strategy now would delay the disposition of surplus weapons plutonium by years and would waste the nearly $1 billion already invested in the MOX program. Separately, OMB also voiced support for House appropriators' full funding of the repository project at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. ------------ BNG awarded 36-year, GBP230 million contract by UK's MoD London (Platts)--24May2006 BNG has been awarded a 36-year, 230 million pound (US$434 million) contract by the UK government's Ministry of Defence, MoD, to receive and store used fuel from the UK's nuclear submarine fleet at the Sellafield reprocessing complex. A British Nuclear Group spokesman declined to provide figures for the amount of used fuel involved. BNG's specialist contracting company, Project Services, has been appointed the contract's managing agent. The MoD's used nuclear submarine propulsion fuel has been stored at Sellafield since 1968. In 1998, when the existing storage facility was nearing the end of its life and capacity, the MoD signed a major contract with BNG's parent, British Nuclear Fuels plc, BNFL, which was due to earn BNFL 70 million pounds over ten years. It entailed the construction of a new submarine fuel storage facility known as the Wet Inlet Facility. This was constructed as an extension to Sellafield's Fuel Handling Plant, and started operating in 2003. For similar stories, request a free trial to Platts Nucleonics Week at http://www.platts.com/Request%20More%20Information/ ------------ Senate panel approves NRC commissioners' nominations Washington (Platts)--23May2006 A Senate panel approved Dale Klein's nomination today for the NRC along with Commissioners Gregory Jaczko and Peter Lyons. Fourteen of the 18 Senate Environment and Public Works Committee members who attended the meeting gave consent in a voice vote. The committee voted en bloc on the nominations of Klein, Jaczko, Lyons, and Molly O'Neill, nominee for an assistant administrator position at the Environmental Protection Agency. Jaczko and Lyons were presidential recess appointments in January 2005, and their nominations for a permanent seat on the NRC has been pending since February 2005. Klein, now an official at the Department of Defense, is to replace outgoing Chairman Nils Diaz. The full Senate is expected to soon consider all the nominations, a committee staffer said. ------------ GE to license, develop Silex's uranium enrichment technology Washington (Platts)--22May2006 GE Energy and Silex Systems have signed an agreement giving GE the right to license and develop the Australian company's uranium enrichment technology, the two companies announced today. According to a press release issued today, the agreement "represents an expansion by GE into the global uranium enrichment sector." The release said work on Silex -- separation of isotopes by laser excitation -- would take place at GE's Wilmington, North Carolina site and would proceed in phases, from development through "potential construction" of a test loop, a pilot plant, and a full-scale enrichment plant. USEC had funded the Silex project for several years, but then decided to stop and concentrate on developing its own gas centrifuge enrichment technology. ------------ Nuclear generation down, expenses up in Progress Energy results Washington (Platts)--22May2006 Progress Energy's total nuclear generation dipped in first quarter 2006 from a year ago, and operation and maintenance expenses for some of its nuclear plants were higher in the just-ended quarter, the company said last week in releasing first quarter results. Generation from Progress Energy's five nuclear plants was 8,544,346 megawatt-hours (gross) in first quarter 2006, down 2.7% (234,875 MWh) from the same time last year, the company said. Generation from the company's reactors in North Carolina (Brunswick-1 and -2 and Harris-1) and South Carolina (Robinson-2) increased during the just-ended quarter to 7,073,533 MWh, a 2.2% increase (153,852 MWh) over the year-ago period, Progress Energy said. Most of the increase is associated with Brunswick-2, which gained 37 MW after completion last year of a multi-year uprate project, the company said. Progress Energy's Florida reactor, Crystal River-3, generated 1,470,813 MWh in first quarter 2006, down 21% (388,727 MWh) from a year ago. The unit had two maintenance outages for stepup transformer work in first quarter 2006 -- the first beginning Dec. 28, 2005 and continuing to Jan. 8 and the second running from March 18 to March 27. O&M expenses for Progress Energy Carolinas business segment increased because of increased scope and pre-outage costs at its nuclear plants and estimated environmental remediation liabilities recorded during the quarter, Progress Energy said. Harris-1 had pre-outage costs of $13 million in first quarter 2006. The outage was more extensive because of the amount of work required for its 10-year inservice inspection. Although the Harris-1 outage did not begin until April 8, costs were incurred in advance for mobilization and pre-staging work, Progress Energy said. Brunswick had $9 million of increased costs compared to the same time last year, Progress Energy said. Brunswick-2 refueled in first quarter 2005 in 33 days and Brunswick-1 in first quarter 2006 in 35 days. The planned outage scope for unit 1's outage was greater than unit 2's a year ago, the company said. In addition, in general there were increased non-outage costs from first quarter 2005 to first quarter 2006 dealing with such things as company labor, contract labor and materials, Progress Energy said. Progress Energy reported first quarter net income of $45 million, down from $93 million a year ago. 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