Platts - Wednesday, May 31, 2006 http://www.platts.com ------------ NRC okays license transfers to Exelon for three PSEG plants Washington (Platts)--31May2006 NRC has approved license transfers to Exelon for the three plants operated or partially owned by Public Service Enterprise Group, the agency announced today. Exelon and PSEG announced in December 2004 their planned merger. The approval covers Hope Creek, Salem, and Peach Bottom. PSEG owns and operates Hope Creek, operates and jointly owns (with Exelon) Salem, and jointly owns Peach Bottom, which Exelon operates. NRC spokesman Scott Burnell said even cases such as Peach Bottom's, in which a partial owner becomes a full owner, require a license transfer. In a press release, the NRC said its approval is contingent on the transfer of decommissioning funds and adequate proof of insurance. Those steps, in turn, are dependent on the completion of other, still-pending regulatory reviews of the Exelon-PSEG merger. ------------ US company is ready to fulfill orders for large components Washington (Platts)--30May2006 With its nuclear accreditation in hand again, BWX Technologies Inc. says it is prepared to begin manufacturing large, heavy components for the US commercial nuclear industry. Those components could include steam generators, reactor vessels, closure heads, and pressure vessels, said Rod Woolsey, vice president and general manager for BWXT's nuclear equipment division. Woolsey said May 23 that his company has had no orders or firm commitments but is "quite excited about the opportunities" that lie ahead. A package of financial incentives secured in a new energy policy law and close congressional oversight of NRC's licensing process has eased some of the industry's concerns. But not all barriers have yet been surmounted. One looming problem is the supply chain, which greatly diminished over the past three decades in the US and has become a global marketplace, with a checkout line of international proportions. One industry official told Platts this week that if a company decided to place an order now for a new reactor, it would have to wait behind about 20 other orders for a reactor vessel. Many of those orders are coming from France, the official said. BWXT let its nuclear accreditation lapse in the mid-1990s after years of maintaining its "N" (nuclear grade) stamp. About a year ago the company decided to reapply for an N-stamp because of the resurgence of interest in the industry. Last month the company received nuclear accreditation from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers for its two manufacturing facilities, one in Barberton, Ohio and the other in Mount Vernon, Indiana. The Mount Vernon facility, located along the Ohio River, was built in the early 1960s specifically to support the commercial nuclear industry, BWXT says. Woolsey said there is a large crane at the facility and its location on the river allows for components to be shipped by barge. "As the only domestic manufacturer of large, heavy pressure vessels, we look forward to being an active participant in the industry's comeback," Woolsey said last month, after BWXT received its accreditation. Anthony Earley Jr., chairman/CEO of DTE Energy, said May 18 at the Nuclear Energy Institute's annual industry conference that BWXT's Indiana plant has "been refurbished to world-class status." Woolsey said the facility has been used to fill DOE orders, and would take little time to ready production for commercial orders. BWXT would need to obtain qualification of welding and some basic procedures, "but it's not a matter of learning a new technology or new processes," he said. For similar news, take a trial to Platts Nucleonics Week at http://nucweek.platts.com. ------------ Consultant analyzes scenarios for building AP1000 in Australia Paris (Platts)--30May2006 Australia could build a profitable AP1000 plant with initial government subsidies of capital and operating costs, UK consultant John Gittus concluded in a report prepared for the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organization (Ansto), made public May 28 (www.ansto.gov.au/Nuclear_Options_Paper_May061.pdf). Gittus, a former UK Atomic Energy Authority safety chief who now consults for several governments, analyzed different scenarios under which Australia could build its first nuclear power plant. His "preferred scenario" would have the federal government subsidize 14.3% of the cost of the world's fifth to ninth AP1000 unit (i.e., four to eight were assumed to have been built previously elsewhere), plus 21.4% of the cost of its electricity for the first 12 years of operation. That would make its power competitive with a new coal or combined-cycle gas-fired station, at (Aus)$36 (US$27.40) per megawatt-hour, he calculates. Under an alternative scenario, without government subsidy but with risks shared among stakeholders, the government and the risk-transfer market, a fifth-of-a-kind AP1000 in Australia would generate power at (Aus)$38/MWh, he calculated. ------------ Working group devoted to nuclear established in White House london (Platts)--30May2006 A White House official announced last week that a special working group, led by the National Economic Council, has been established to oversee the expansion of nuclear power in the US. Lisa Epifani, special assistant to the president for economic policy on the NEC, told the Nuclear Energy Assembly in San Francisco that the group is still in the formative stages. But it is expected that the core members will include representatives from the White House Council of Economic Advisers, Office of Management and Budget, Council on Environmental Quality, Office of Science and Technology Policy, Office of the Vice President, DOE, and Environmental Protection Agency. She said the specific activities of the group are still being ironed out, but the group possibly could serve as a "sounding board" for proposals to advance nuclear construction, focus on plant licensing issues, request progress reports from the NRC, partner with state and local leaders, and brief President George W. Bush's cabinet members on nuclear energy-related matters. Epifani, 34, has been in her position for less than three months. Prior to working at the White House, she was the majority counsel for the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Epifani called the expansion of nuclear power a "presidential priority" and said the working group's aim is to assist in delivering results to meet Bush's expectations. One conference attendee noted that Bush has embraced a "solution" to the global warming dilemma but "won't embrace the problem." Epifani told the conference that Allan Hubbard, director of the NEC, would chair the working group. The role of NEC, which is part of the executive office, is to advise the president on economic issues. Following her talk, Epifani told reporters that the working group has only met once, on May 4, and that representatives from EPA and CEA did not attend. She said the group is in the "brainstorming stages" and plans to meet every two weeks. The internal group does not yet have a name, though unofficially it is referred to as the nuclear accelerator working group. The working group is another indicator that Bush is hoping to see a new plant order before leaving office. Deputy Energy Secretary Clay Sell reminded the conference May 18 that the administration had "only 977 days left to build momentum for the energy policy." "More than anything, the safety and operational record of the industry over the last decade have put nuclear power back on the table," Sell said. But in the end, there was no one action the government could take to instigate a nuclear renaissance, he said. "It is you ? the industry, the investors, the builders ? [that] have the power to really make it happen," Sell said. For similar stories, take a trial to Platts Nucleonics Week at http://www.platts.com/Request%20More%20Information/ ------------ Senate OKs Sproat nomination as DOE civilian nuclear waste chief Washington (Platts)--26May2006 Ward Sproat on Friday was confirmed as director of the Department of Energy's civilian nuclear waste program. The US Senate confirmed the appointment of the former nuclear industry executive roughly seven months after President Bush nominated Sproat to be in charge of the controversial repository project at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. At the time of his nomination in September, Sproat was a managing partner in the McNeil, Sproat & Associates consultancy. Previously, he was chief operating officer for Pebble Bed Modular Reactor in South Africa and had been vice president of international projects at Exelon Generation. Senate consideration of Sproat's nomination had been stalled by holds that Harry Reid of Nevada, the top Democrat in the Senate, and three other senators had placed on it. A single hold can block a nomination from moving to the floor for a vote. Reid lifted his hold after reviewing reports that stated that the scientific integrity of water infiltration work by the US Geological Survey at Yucca Mountain and documents on that work had not been compromised. Senator Mary Landrieu, Democrat-Louisiana, lifted her hold Friday. Landrieu cited "significant progress" in Louisiana's efforts to obtain a share of the federal offshore oil and gas revenues to fund coastal and flood control projects, as the reason for her action. For similar news, take a trial to Platts Nucleonics Week at http://nucweek.platts.com. ------------ Senate confirms NRC nominees Washington (Platts)--26May2006 The Senate approved NRC nominee Dale Klein and two other commissioners today under a vote by unanimous consent, an expedited process used when there are no objections. President George W. Bush said last month he intended to tap Klein, if confirmed, as the agency's next chairman. Klein, now at the Department of Defense, will succeed Nils Diaz, whose term ends June 30. NRC Commissioners Gregory Jaczko and Peter Lyons will now be able to serve out the remainder of their terms. Both were presidential recess appointments and would have had to leave the commission when Congress adjourns later this year if the Senate did not act on their pending nominations. Jaczko's term runs through June 2008, Lyon's until June 2009, and Klein's until June 2011. The five NRC commissioners have staggered five-year appointments. ------------