The following is an abridged version of the Atoms for Africa report published last week by the Center for Global Development and co-authored by Abigail Sah, Jessica Lovering, Omaro Maseli and Aishwarya Saxena. In the face of increasing concern about human-caused climate change, there is an urgent need for a global transition to clean energy. Yet in many parts of the world, such as sub-Saharan Afr...Read More
With melting ice expanding access to the Arctic, investors from China to Canada are watching Greenland's election for signs of the political will to get a flagging mining programme on the island back on track.Greenland is hoping rising commodity prices can help attract foreign investment and get its fragile economy up to speed to realise a long-term goal of independence from Denmark.Hype about a p...Read More
Toro Energy Limited (ASX:TOE) is advancing to the next stage of the Beneficiation and Process Design (BPD) studies for its Wiluna Uranium Project in Western Australia.This follows the successful tests in confirming opportunities to substantially reduce the capital and operating costs of the processing facility.The key outcome of the BPD studies to date has been a re-design of the process flow shee...Read More
The US Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI) reported yesterday that coordination among the various entities involved in the development of accident-tolerant fuels (ATF) has "progressed to the point that all stakeholders now agree on the feasibility of a 2023 timeline". Citing speakers at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's (NRC's) 12 April briefing on ATF, the NEI said US research, development and licen...Read More
Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL) has invited small modular reactor project proponents to evaluate the construction and operation of a demonstration SMR project at a site it manages. CNL aims to have a new SMR constructed on its Chalk River site by 2026. CNL said the invitation represents the launch of its SMR review process, including the pre-qualification stage, which allows CNL to evaluate t...Read More
Centennial, Colorado, April 18, 2018 - Westwater Resources, Inc. - (NASDAQ: WWR) a diversified and growing developer of energy minerals and materials, is pleased to announce the completion of a Technical Report on its Ambrosia Lake Uranium Project, which is located in McKinley County in the State of New Mexico. The Technical Report is available on the Company's website: www.WestwaterResources.net,...Read More
Centennial, Colorado, April 18, 2018 - Westwater Resources, Inc. - (NASDAQ: WWR) a diversified and growing developer of energy minerals and materials, is pleased to announce the completion of a Technical Report on its Ambrosia Lake Uranium Project, which is located in McKinley County in the State of New Mexico. The Technical Report is available on the Company's website: www.WestwaterResources.net,...Read More
India and the USA have signed an agreement enabling their scientists to collaborate on the development and construction of different types of neutrino detectors.The signing of the agreement (Image: DOE)The agreement was signed in New Delhi by US Energy Secretary Rick Perry and India's Atomic Energy Secretary Sekhar Basu. It opens the way to jointly advancing cutting-edge neutrino science projects...Read More
The announced closure of four nuclear power plants in Ohio and Pennsylvania will lead to increased emissions of carbon dioxide and air pollutants, according to a report released by the Brattle Group. The retirement of the Beaver Valley, Davis-Besse, Perry and Three Mile Island plants will also mean higher electricity costs for residents, and the loss of thousands of jobs.Davis-Besse is one of the...Read More
Estonian-founded cyber security specialist company Guardtime has planned and executed a custom cyber exercise for the UK's civil nuclear sector.The exercise, which took place in early February, was run on the Estonian Defence Forces' Cyber Range complemented with industrial control systems simulating a nuclear power plant. Live cyber-attacks were conducted against these systems to provide the par...Read More
(Bloomberg) - A former lobbyist for one of the largest U.S. coal mining companies won confirmation to be the Environmental Protection Agency's No. 2 official, putting him in position to take over the agency, at least temporarily, if embattled Administrator Scott Pruitt were to leave.Andrew Wheeler, a former Republican Senate staffer whose client list at lobbying firm Faegre Baker Daniels LLP incl...Read More
New Jersey legislators yesterday passed bills establishing a zero emissions certificate (ZEC) programme that will recognise and compensate eligible nuclear power plants for their zero-carbon attributes and contribution to fuel diversity.PSEG supporters celebrate (Image: @PSEGNews)The New Jersey Senate passed bill S2313 by 28 votes to 9, with the Assembly passing its version of the bill, A3724, by...Read More
The social and environmental impacts of electricity provision affect individuals, economies and countries in ways that are not captured in market prices, but yet are too important to be neglected, according to a report issued today by the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA). Despite their importance, full accounting for these costs remains difficult, it says.The report - The Full Costs of Electricity...Read More
The chairman of Energy Resources of Australia (ERA) has called on Australian governments to embrace the potential to expand the country's uranium mining industry and be prepared for an expansion in nuclear power generation worldwide.Uranium ore stockpiles at the Ranger mine site (Image: ERA)Addressing shareholders at the company's annual general meeting in Darwin yesterday, Peter Mansell said that...Read More
China General Nuclear (CGN) has begun loading fuel into the core of unit 1 of the Taishan nuclear power plant in China's Guangdong province following the issuance of a permit from the regulator. The unit is later this year scheduled to become the first EPR reactor to enter operation.Fuel loading operations begin at Taishan 1 (Image: CGN)CGN said the Taishan Nuclear Power Joint Venture Company - a...Read More
The reactor internals for the demonstration Hualong One being constructed as unit 5 of the Fuqing nuclear power plant in China's Fujian province have been shipped from the manufacturing plant in Shanghai. The unit is scheduled to be completed next year.The reactor internals for Fuqing 5 leave the factory (Image: CNNC)The reactor internals were designed by China Nuclear Power Research and Design In...Read More
Canadian science, health care and nuclear sector organisations have launched an initiative aiming to ensure the country remains a world leader in the production of medical isotopes following the final closure of the National Research Universal (NRU) reactor. The Canadian Nuclear Isotope Council (CNIC) aims to raise awareness and support long-term policies at the domestic and international level.Ca...Read More
Unit 3 of the Ohi nuclear power plant in Japan's Fukui Prefecture today resumed commercial operation, Kansai Electric Power Company announced. The reactor is the sixth to be restarted after clearing the country's revised safety regulations.Ohi units 3 and 4 (Image: Kansai)Following the shutdown of all of Japan's reactors after the March 2011 accident at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, Ohi 3 and 4 wer...Read More
During a ceremony held on Monday to mark Iran's National Day of Nuclear Technology, President Hassan Rouhani issued an order to transfer yellowcake produced in the Ardakan factory, located in the central province of Yazd, to a uranium conversion facility in Isfahan.According to the Tehran Times, the uranium from which the yellowcake was derived was originally extracted from the Saghand mine, also...Read More
Those worried that the positive momentum in the mining and metals sector is beginning to wane after two years of strong gains may find encouragement from a new survey by private capital tracker Preqin.Fundraising by unlisted funds for investment in mining and metals was a non-starter last year. A single private capital fund closed last year after rustling up all of $24 million.A further 13 funds...Read More