"NRG Might Exit Nuclear Project"

The Wall Street Journal reports that NRG Energy, based in New Jersey, may pull the plug on its involvement in the South Texas Project nuclear power plant's proposal to build two additional reactors of the General Electric-Hitachi "Advanced Boiling Water Reactor" (ABWR) design at the site which already hosts two operating reactors (pictured at the left). What makes this news all the more remarkable is the fact that the U.S. Department of Energy had previously selected the South Texas Project proposal as one of the top four applications in the entire country for new reactor loan guarantees. As reported by Greg Harman in a three part series entitled "Nukes of Hazard," as well as additional coverage in the San Antonio Current and the San Antonio Express News, the South Texas Project new reactor proposal has been coming apart at the seams for several months now. DOE seems all too ready to risk many billions in taxpayer funding on new reactors resting on financial -- not to mention safety -- foundations built on sand.

A new analysis of the global retreat by Stephane Lhomme of Sortir du nucleaire

Stephane Lhomme, a spokesman for the French anti-nuclear network, Sortir du Nucleaire, has written an analysis of the global nuclear retreat. In it he warns that it is the re-licensing of existing reactors that will comprise the real "renaissance."

A little fun at FirstEnergy's expense

FPL halts two new reactors targeted at Turkey Point!

In what appears to be a major victory for anti-nuclear efforts in Florida, the state's Public Utility Commission  (PUC) has rejected Florida Power and Light's (FPL) request for a massive electricity rate increase, which would have largely gone to pay for two new Toshiba-Westinghouse AP-1000 reactors at its Turkey Point nuclear power plant near Miami. This victory is all the more significant, in that the State of Florida had already empowered its PUC to approve "Construction Work in Progress," charging ratepayers on their bills in advance to build new reactors, many years before any electricity is actually delivered. However, the PUC has decided to refuse such charges.  FPL responded by halting its plans to pursue the two new reactors past the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission licensing phase. Thus, continued anti-nuclear vigilance will be required, as FPL will undoubtedly try again to force its ratepayers to bear the financial burdens and risks of building new reactors, while offering little to none of the projected profits in return. David Kraft of Nuclear Energy Information Service in Chicago asserts that this decision could well set back the nuclear power relapse nation-wide.

Another blow to the Areva empire

The French oil company, Total, has opted not to invest in Areva after the French nuclear company lost a bid to build two new reactors in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Total’s director general also questioned whether it was possible to make the EPR – Areva’s flagship new reactor – less expensive without compromising safety. “That’s the real question,” he told Reuters news agency. The UAE deal was considered a crown jewel for the struggling Areva whose EPR has been the subject of postponements and cancelations in major markets like the U.S. and China. South Korea won the UAE deal – said to be worth as much as $40 billion with four new reactors planned. It is believed that the recent joint statement by the Finnish, British and French nuclear safety bodies, asking that the EPR's control and safety systems should be changed to avoid both failing at once, contributed to the French loss of the UAE contract.