ICYMI: Senate Agrees to Manchin’s Bipartisan NDAA Amendment to Onshore Nuclear Fuel Production

Today, the U.S. Senate voted 96-3 to agree to Senator Joe Manchin’s (D-WV), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, S.Amdt.999, a bipartisan amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024 that directs the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to establish a nuclear fuel program with the purpose of onshoring …

Key upgrade completed at Darlington

Ontario Power Generation (OPG) has completed a major 10-year project to install three new emergency power generators (EPGs) at its Darlington nuclear power plant to support the continued operation of the plant for decades to come. EPGs provide reliable backup power in case of an emergency. Each turbine/generator set and its auxiliary systems provides a …

Dome hoisted into place on Xudapu 3

The dome has been hoisted into place on the reactor building of Xudapu unit 3 in a single stage process, six months ahead of schedule, with China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) describing the project as “a model of global energy cooperation”. The Xudapu unit, in Liaoning province, is one of four VVER-1200 reactors being supplied by …

Niger Army Chief Backs Attempted Coup in West African Country

Amadou Abdramane, center, during a televised statement, on July 26.Source: Télé Sahel/AFP/Getty Images Niger’s army chief has backed a coup in the West African country, a day after President Mohamed Bazoum was detained by soldiers. The army announced its support for the coup plotters in order to “avoid bloodshed,” it said in a letter released on social …

Canada’s nuclear drive picks up speed

Canada’s plans to make nuclear power a central part of its decarbonization strategy are taking shape with major announcements around large nuclear builds, small modular reactors and medical isotopes. Nuclear power accounts for around 15% of Canada’s electricity generation with most capacity in Ontario where some 40% of the population resides. A total of 19 …

France chooses Rhône site to build two EPR reactors

The French government, which last year announced its intention of adding eight EPR reactors to the national fleet before 2027, has chosen Bugey nuclear power station as the site of two of them. The choice was between Bugey, which is sited near Lyon on the River Rhône, and Tricastin in the Drôme region, about 50km north of …

Studies explore use of nuclear propulsion in shipping

A study commissioned by the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) has explored the potential of advanced nuclear reactor technology for commercial marine propulsion, whilst a study led by UK-based innovative reactor developer Newcleo will consider the feasibility of nuclear applications to the shipping industry, including the firm’s small modular lead-cooled fast reactor technology. ABS commissioned …

TVEL puts case at conference for TVS-K performance

Specialists from Rosatom’s TVEL have told an international nuclear fuel conference that the Russian-designed TVS-K fuel for Western-design pressurised water reactors (PWRs) had demonstrated “excellent behaviour under commercial operating conditions”. TVEL started PWR fuel fabrication at Novosibirsk in 2021 and says its modified versions of its TVS-K fuel is “the only nuclear fuel on the …

Kozloduy applies to use Westinghouse fuel in unit 5

The Bulgarian Nuclear Regulatory Agency said it has received an application requesting the issuance of a permit for the use of Westinghouse-manufactured VVER-1000 fuel in unit 5 of the country’s Kozloduy nuclear power plant. Westinghouse has signed a decade-long contract to supply fuel for the reactor. The regulator said the application submitted by the plant …