U.S. offers support for U.K. new nuclear buildNuclear NewsPower & OperationsJune 16, 2020, 9:26AM|Nuclear News StaffCiting reports that China has recently threatened to pull its support for new nuclear build in the United Kingdom, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on June 9 offered assistance from the United States and vehement criticism of Beijing.Pompeo responds: "The United States stands with our allies and partners against the Chinese Communist Party’s [CCP] coercive bullying tactics,” Pompeo said in a statement. “In the latest example, Beijing has reportedly threatened to punish British bank HSBC and to break commitments to build nuclear power plants in the United Kingdom unless London allows Huawei to build its 5G network. Shenzhen-based Huawei is an extension of the Chinese Communist Party’s surveillance state.”Pompeo continued, “Beijing’s aggressive behavior shows why countries should avoid economic overreliance on China and should guard their critical infrastructure from CCP influence. Australia, Denmark, and other free nations have recently faced pressure from CCP interests to bow to China’s political wishes. The United States stands ready to assist our friends in the U.K. with any needs they have, from building secure and reliable nuclear power plants to developing trusted 5G solutions that protect their citizens’ privacy. Free nations deal in true friendship and desire mutual prosperity, not political and corporate kowtows.”Why it matters: The China General Nuclear Power Group has partnered with EDF Energy on U.K. nuclear construction projects at the Hinkley Point and Sizewell sites. Newswire readers may recall that workers at Hinkley Point C recently completed the 49,000-ton base for the station’s second reactor, Unit C2, while EDF Energy in late May submitted a development consent order application to the U.K. government’s Planning Inspectorate to build the Sizewell C power station.CGN and EDF Energy are proposing to build a reactor at the Bradwell nuclear site in Essex. Although the project is still in its infancy, the United Kingdom’s Office for Nuclear Regulation in February completed step three in a four-step generic design assessment review of the proposed Bradwell B reactor technology—the United Kingdom’s version of China’s Hualong One design.Tags:bradwellcgnedf energyhinkley pointsizewellShare:LinkedInTwitterFacebook
EDF fined millions for disseminating misleading information about U.K. nuclear projectThe Enforcement Committee of the Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF) has imposed a fine of €5 million (about $5.9 million) on Électricitéde France for providing false information about the Hinkley Point C new-build nuclear project in the United Kingdom. The committee has also imposed a €50,000 (about $59,000) fine on EDF’s former chairman and chief executive officer, Henri Proglio. According to a July 30 statement from the AMF, the false information was spread via an October 8, 2014, news release.The AMF is described on its website as an independent public authority that regulates the French financial marketplace and its participants.Go to Article
New design center supports construction of Hinkley Point CUK EPR Design Centre, Bristol, England. Image: EDF EnergyEDF Energy has opened a new engineering design facility in Bristol, England, to support the next phase of construction at the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station in Somerset, the company announced on July 14. The UK EPR Design Centre at Aztec West brings together nuclear designers and engineers from EDF and British engineering partners and suppliers, including Framatome UK, Atkins, Jacobs, Assystem, Anotech, and Vulcain, the announcement said.Go to Article
More nuclear a good choice for U.K., but costs must fall, report saysA report published last week by Energy Systems Catapult, a U.K.-based clean energy nonprofit, concludes that adding double-digit gigawatts of new nuclear is a “low-regrets option” for the United Kingdom as it strives to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. (Legislation establishing the 2050 target date was signed in June of last year, making the United Kingdom the first of the world’s major economic powers to take that step.) The report also stresses, however, that costs for new nuclear must decrease significantly for the technology to meet its potential.Go to Article
ONR: Improvement needed at Heysham 1The United Kingdom’s Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) issued an improvement notice to EDF Energy Nuclear Generation Ltd. earlier this month for a problem involving the pressure systems safety regulations (PSSR) at the two-unit Heysham 1 nuclear power station. The notice was served following an inspection of the Unit 1 pressure vessel at the Lancashire site.Go to Article
Base for second Hinkley Point C reactor completedConcrete pour at the Hinkley Point C2 reactor. Photo: EDF EnergyWorkers at the Hinkley Point C nuclear construction project in the United Kingdom have completed the 49,000-ton base for the station’s second reactor, Unit C2, hitting a target date set more than four years ago, according to EDF Energy.Go to Article
EDF submits application to build Sizewell C stationArtist’s rendering of the Sizewell site, with Sizewell C at right. Image: EDF EnergyÉlectricité de France subsidiary EDF Energy has submitted an application to the United Kingdom government’s Planning Inspectorate for a development consent order (DCO) to build a new power station, Sizewell C, at the Sizewell nuclear site in Suffolk. The agency received the application on May 27, after it had been deferred for two months because of the COVID-19 pandemic.Go to Article
