Platts - Wednesday, November 21, 2007 http://www.platts.com ------------ ESP to be issued for Dominion's North Anna Washington (Platts)--20Nov2007 Dominion Nuclear North Anna will be the third permit holder when the NRC staff issues an early site permit, or ESP, within the next 10 business days, as directed by the NRC commissioners in a November 20 vote. Dominion submitted its ESP application in September 2003 seeking approval of the North Anna site near Louisa, Virginia for possible future construction of a new plant. ------------ Uranium spot price settles at $93/lb U308, consensus emerges Washington (Platts)--20Nov2007 There is some consensus this week that the spot price of uranium has -- for the moment -- settled at a level of $93 a pound U3O8, sources said. TradeTech kept its price at $93/lb in its Friday report, while Ux Consulting raised its price $1 a pound to $93/lb late Monday. TradeTech said the "uncertainty that surfaced in the market over the past few weeks diminished slightly as the gap between willing buyers and willing sellers narrowed, with sellers showing the greater willingness to move." Ux said in its latest report that although upward price movement had slowed, there is "no evidence at present to indicate that any downward price pressure is developing." Ux said suppliers appear to be testing this current market by offer smaller lots and smaller price increases. It would not be surprising, Ux added, to see price movements of only 50 cents/lb for the next month. The Platts NuclearFuel price range for this week is $90-$96/lb U3O8. ------------ NRC made redacted version of TVA's Bellefonte new reactor license London (Platts)--20Nov2007 NRC made a redacted version of TVA's Bellefonte new reactor license application public November 19, the agency said. The application, minus proprietary and security-related details, is available at: http://www.nrc.gov/reactors/new-licensing/col.html. The Tennessee Valley Authority, with the support of industry consortium NuStart Energy, filed October 30 for a combined construction permit-operating license which would allow TVA to build two AP1000 reactors at the site near Scottsboro, Alabama. NRC staff is reviewing the application for completeness. If NRC determines it has sufficient information for formal review to start, the completed application will be docketed. ------------ Ireland should reconsider nuclear, IBEC says Brussels (Platts)--19Nov2007 Ireland should reconsider nuclear power and a parliamentary committee should be appointed to evaluate future energy options, according to the Irish Business and Employers Confederation, IBEC. In a statement released November 19, IBEC said the parliamentary committee should consider all the low-carbon options: wind, biomass, biofuel, and nuclear. "Selecting the most cost competitive suite of solutions for Ireland can only be determined through robust economic analysis," IBEC said. ------------ Plan approved for environmental assessment for new Ignalina plant Stockholm (Platts)--16Nov2007 A plan for preparing an environmental impact assessment for a new Ignalina nuclear plant has been approved by the Lithuanian Environment Ministry, national utility Lietuvos Energija said in a statement November 15. The 255-page plan was developed by Finnish consulting company Poeyry Energy and the Lithuania Energy Institute. The assessment, for a plant with up to 3,400 MW of installed capacity, is expected to take 21 months. ------------