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Regulatory delay closes San Onofre

07 June 2013

Both reactors at the San Onofre nuclear power plant in California are being retired due to the lengthy and uncertain regulation surrounding their return to service.

"We have concluded that the continuing uncertainty about when or if San Onofre might return to service was not good for our customers, our investors or the need to plan for our region's long-term electricity needs," said Ted Craver, chairman and CEO of Edison International - the parent company of San Onofre owners Southern California Edison (SCE).

The plant's problems began in January 2012 with a fault in one of two new steam generators installed as part of an uprate and modernization program of unit 3. The reactor shut down automatically when a minor amount of radioactive material was detected coming from a failed tube in the steam generator, but this aspect of the issue led to the mobilization of an anti-nuclear campaign against the plant, its majority owner Southern California Edison (SCE), and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries which supplied the faulty component.

Land secured for pilot fast reactor

18 June 2013

SVBR-100 module (AKME) 48A lease agreement has been signed for land on which the pilot heavy metal-cooled SVBR-100 reactor will be built in Dimitrovgrad in Russia's Ulyanovsk region.

Rostov 3 vessel installation begins

18 June 2013

Rostov 3 RPV installation 48The reactor pressure vessel for unit 3 of Russia's Rostov nuclear power plant is in the process of installation. The component has been put in place ready for circulation pipes to be connected.

Fuel cycle roundup #9

17 June 2013

• No appeals against Wiluna
• Resources up at Eco Ridge
• US production up in 2012
• Etango licence renewal

UK looks to nuclear manufacturing future

18 June 2013

Forgemasters TSB (Image: SFIL)_48Work has begun on two collaborative research programs to develop new forging and casting techniques for nuclear components, while UK manufacturers are invited to apply for funding to help them compete in the nuclear industry.

Fine for misdirected waste shipment

17 June 2013

Sellafield ariel (Sellafield Ltd)-48Sellafield Ltd has been fined £700,000 ($1.1 million) for mistakenly sending four bags of low-level waste to a conventional landfill instead of the correct facility.

Japan and V4 pledge cooperation

17 June 2013

V4+Japan (Image: Government of Japan)_48A summit meeting of the leaders of Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia and Japan has concluded with the prime ministers promising ongoing cooperation in fields including nuclear energy.

Industry Talk

Kudankulam delayed again

The first unit of the Kudankulam nuclear power plant is now scheduled to begin commercial operation in July instead of this month, according to Nuclear Power Corporation of Indian Ltd. The 1000 MWe Russian-supplied reactor is said to be 99.7% complete. Operation of the second unit, 94.5% complete, has also been pushed back from December until March 2014.

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AtomExpo 2013