Wales inks deal with Sizewell C groupNuclear NewsPower & OperationsFebruary 8, 2021, 2:59PM|Nuclear News StaffThe outlook for new nuclear construction in Wales may have taken a bleak turn, but that hasn’t stopped the Welsh government from seeking other opportunities for its nuclear industry. On February 5, the government announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding with the Sizewell C Consortium, an organization of nearly 200 businesses and trade unions from the United Kingdom's nuclear supply chain focused on ensuring that the proposed Sizewell C nuclear power station in Suffolk, England, actually gets built.The consortium includes the firms Atkins, Balfour Beatty Bailey, Cavendish Nuclear, Doosan Babcock, EDF, Laing O’Rourke, and Mott MacDonald, as well as the unions GMB, Unite, and Prospect.A big deal: According to the announcement, in the event that the Sizewell C project is approved, the MOU could potentially see an investment of up to £900 million (about $1.2 billion) in the Welsh nuclear supply chain and up to 4,700 jobs supported across Wales. The signatories also view the agreement as a way to help retain the Welsh nuclear skills base.SkatesWhat they’re saying: “Wales has a strong history of nuclear expertise and know-how,” said Ken Skates, Welsh economy minister. “A number of businesses across the country are now established parts of the global nuclear supply chain, and they are now poised to benefit should Sizewell C be given the go-ahead. While we have recently had disappointing news about Wylfa Newydd, we remain committed to that project and the supply chain. This MOU shows how the Welsh expertise in the nuclear industry is in demand and can be used across the U.K. and further afield.”GilmourCameron Gilmour, vice president of nuclear for Doosan Babcock and spokesman for the Sizewell C Consortium, added, “This MOU is a signal of intent from the nuclear industry that Sizewell C can deliver jobs, skills, and long-term economic growth right across Wales. The consortium . . . is determined to build on Wales’s proud nuclear heritage and now stands ready to do so. We need to continue along the process of approval for Sizewell C in order to deliver the advantages to nuclear suppliers in Wales.”A little history: Électricité de France subsidiary EDF Energy first proposed the construction of a new nuclear facility at the Sizewell site in 2012. Consisting of twin European pressurized reactors, the Sizewell C station would be built next to Sizewell B, a 1,198-MWe pressurized water reactor that began operation in 1995. (The Sizewell site also houses Sizewell A, a 290-MWe Magnox gas-cooled reactor, which was permanently shuttered in 2006.) Sizewell C would be a near copy of the two-unit Hinkley Point C station, currently under construction in Somerset, England.In May of last year, EDF Energy applied to the U.K. government’s Planning Inspectorate for a development consent order to build the plant. The DCO application was accepted for review in July, and in December the government announced that it would begin talks with EDF to fund the project.Tags:atkinscavendish nucleardoosan babcockedf energyhinkley point cnuclear supply chainsizewell cwylfa newyddShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
Uranium reserve bill reintroduced in House; Grand Canyon mining ban progressesThe House of Representatives produced some good news for the nation’s uranium mining industry in late February, but also some of the opposite variety.LattaFirst, on February 25, Rep. Bob Latta (R, Ohio) reintroduced the Nuclear Prosperity and Security Act (H.R. 1351), initially brought forward by the congressman last July. The bill would direct the secretary of energy to establish and operate a uranium reserve in the United States to ensure the availability of the element in the event of a market disruption and to support U.S. strategic fuel cycle capabilities.“The United States has fallen behind in the competitive development of nuclear energy, and now we rely heavily on foreign sources of uranium,” Latta stated. “In order to avoid threats to our nuclear supply chain, we need to build up our domestic uranium mining, production, and conversion by establishing a uranium reserve. The Nuclear Prosperity and Security Act would establish a domestic uranium reserve that will result in lower carbon emissions, new jobs and economic growth, and a more secure world.”H.R. 1351 has been referred to the House Energy and Commerce Committee.Go to Article
Wylfa Newydd new-build project scrappedThe loosely connected plug keeping the United Kingdom’s Wylfa Newydd nuclear new-build project alive has been officially pulled.Horizon Nuclear Power, the Hitachi subsidiary that remained involved in the project following its parent company’s pullout in September 2020, has formally withdrawn its application for a development consent order (DCO) regarding the proposed nuclear plant. (DCOs are required for large infrastructure projects in the United Kingdom to move forward.) The facility was to be sited adjacent to the decommissioned Wylfa reactors, on the island of Anglesey, off the northwest coast of Wales.A decision on the DCO application, under review by the U.K. Planning Inspectorate since 2018, was expected by April 30, after a series of successful requests for extensions from Duncan Hawthorne, Horizon’s chief executive officer, who had cited “discussions with third parties that have expressed an interest in progressing with the development” of Wylfa Newydd.Go to Article
Delay, cost increase announced for U.K. nuclear projectPerspex screens and reduced seating capacity in the Hinkley Point canteens help protect the workforce during breaks, EDF Energy said. Photo: EDF EnergyThe unfortunate effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on nuclear new-build projects haven’t stopped with Vogtle: EDF Energy this morning reported that the expected startup date for Unit 1 at its Hinkley Point C site is being pushed from late 2025 to June 2026.In addition, the project’s completion costs are now estimated to be in the range of £22 billion to £23 billion (about $30.2 billion to $31.5 billion), some £500 million (about $686 million) more than the 2019 estimate, EDF said, adding the caveat that these revisions assume an ability to begin a return to normal site conditions by the second quarter of 2021.Go to Article
Hitachi sunsets HorizonHitachi Ltd. plans to close Horizon Nuclear Power, its U.K. nuclear development subsidiary, early this spring, according to weekend news reports. Horizon is the firm behind Wylfa Newydd, the proposed nuclear new-build project in Wales.On January 10, citing a story that appeared earlier that day in The Times, Yahoo reported that Hitachi will close Horizon by March 31—a move, Yahoo said, that “could scupper a sale of the [Wylfa Newydd] site, which has attracted interest from bidders, including a U.S. consortium of Bechtel, Southern Company, and Westinghouse, and dent [the] U.K.’s clean energy goals.”However, a January 11 item on a Welsh online news service stated, “It is understood that if a sale of the site is not secured before Horizon shuts, the sale process will be continued by Hitachi.”Go to Article
Decision on Welsh nuclear project delayed againArtist's concept of the Wylfa Newydd project. Image: Horizon Nuclear PowerThe U.K. government has agreed to delay until April 30 its decision regarding the issuance of a development consent order (DCO) for, the nuclear new-build project proposed for the island of Anglesey, off the northwest coast of Wales. (DCOs are required for large infrastructure projects in the United Kingdom to move forward.)Go to Article
Hinkley Point B to be retired earlier than plannedHinkley Point B, in Somerset, England. Photo: EDF EnergyEDF Energy has made a “proactive decision” to move Britain’s Hinkley Point B power station into its defueling phase no later than July 15, 2022—some eight months earlier than previously scheduled—the company announced on November 19.The two-unit plant, located in Somerset, England, began generating electricity in 1976 and has since produced more than 300 TWh of power, enough to meet the electricity requirements of every home in the United Kingdom for three years, according to EDF.Go to Article
BBC: U.K. government may be close to greenlighting Sizewell CArtist’s rendering of the Sizewell site, with Sizewell C at right. Image: EDF EnergyA BBC News story from late last week states that the U.K. government “is close to giving the green light” to EDF Energy’s proposed Sizewell C nuclear new build project in Suffolk, adding that details surrounding the project’s financing “are still being hammered out.”The Sizewell C station, consisting of twin European pressurized reactors (EPRs), would be built next to Sizewell B, a 1,198-MWe pressurized water reactor that began operation in 1995. (The Sizewell site also houses Sizewell A, a 290-MWe Magnox gas-cooled reactor, but that unit was permanently shuttered in 2006.) Sizewell C would be a near copy of the two-unit Hinkley Point C station, currently under construction in Somerset.Go to Article
U.S. companies said to be in talks with U.K. on Welsh nuclear projectArtist's concept of the Wylfa Newydd project. Image: Horizon Nuclear PowerThe London-based newspaper Financial Times is reporting that a consortium of U.S. firms is holding discussions with the U.K. government to revive Wylfa Newydd, the nuclear new-build project in Wales from which Tokyo-based Hitachi Ltd. withdrew in September. According to the November 10 FT story—which is based on an anonymous source—the consortium is led by Bechtel and includes Southern Company and Westinghouse.Go to Article
Deadline for proposed Welsh plant extended; third-party interest expressedArtist's concept of the Wylfa Newydd project. Image: Horizon Nuclear PowerHopes for the construction of a two-unit nuclear power station in Wales—dashed some three weeks ago when Hitachi Ltd. officially announced its withdrawal from the proposed Wylfa Newydd plant—rose again slightly last week when the United Kingdom’s Planning Inspectorate agreed to delay its decision regarding issuance of a development consent order (DCO) for the project.The original deadline for the decision had been September 30, but following the receipt of a pair of letters from Horizon Nuclear Power—the Hitachi subsidiary in charge of the project—the inspectorate consented to a December 31 extension.Go to Article
New report highlights nuclear supply chain opportunitiesThe London-based World Nuclear Association (WNA) on September 23 released The World Nuclear Supply Chain: Outlook 2040, a market-oriented look at the opportunities and challenges for nuclear power plants and their supply chain, including scenarios for the evolution of nuclear energy over the next two decades. The report provides information on nearly 300 major independent suppliers of nuclear-grade structures, systems, components, and services, as well as an up-to-date picture of ongoing and planned nuclear plant construction, decommissioning, and major refurbishment and waste management projects.Go to Article