Nuclear

Areva qualifies safety seal system for nuclear power plants

Wed, 16 May 2012 15:21:00 GMT

Areva JSPM, a subsidiary of Areva, said it has successfully qualified a new hydrodynamic shaft seal system (HD seal) that can withstand station blackout (SBO) conditions for a period of 120 hours.

Areva said the new seal has an extended service life expected to reach a minimum of 10 years, spacing out the interval between inspections, and requires minimal maintenance.

As a key element of the reactor coolant pump (RCP), which circulates the primary coolant between the core and the steam generator, Areva said the shaft seal system ensures the leak-tightness of the primary circuit.

Part of Areva’s Safety Alliance program, developed to help utilities demonstrate and upgrade the safety of their nuclear plant fleets, the new HD seal system has been designed to be installed in existing RCPs as a replacement for the current hydrostatic seals, as well as in third-generation RCPs for new nuclear power plants. It is suitable for both installed base and new-build markets.

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Westinghouse establishes JV to provide cranes, nuclear fuel-handling equipment in China

Wed, 16 May 2012 15:08:00 GMT

Westinghouse Electric Co.’s PaR Nuclear Inc., a supplier of fuel-handling equipment and nuclear cranes, has signed agreements to establish a joint venture with Taiyuan Heavy Machinery Group Co., (TYHM), manufacturer of cranes, forging equipment, excavators and other heavy machinery.

The new company, PaR-TZ Nuclear Co., Ltd., will provide the assembly, testing and sale of new crane components and fuel-handling equipment, as well as the associated services and spare parts of these to the Chinese commercial nuclear market.

Currently, China has 15 nuclear power plants in operation, more than 25 under construction and more about to start construction. By 2020, the country expects to increase its nuclear capacity to 70 to 80 GWe.

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Depleted uranium to be converted into nuclear fuel

Wed, 16 May 2012 13:23:00 GMT

USEC Inc. (NYSE: USU) said it has entered into a multi-party arrangement with Energy Northwest, the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA), the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and the U. S. Department of Energy (DOE) to extend uranium enrichment operations at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant in Paducah, Ky. The Paducah plant, owned by DOE and leased and operated by USEC, is the largest uranium enrichment plant in the United States, accounting for nearly all current U.S. enriched uranium production, and has operated for almost 60 years.

Under the agreements, DOE will provide high-assay depleted uranium hexafluoride, or tails, to Energy Northwest. Energy Northwest has contracted with USEC to re-enrich the tails into low enriched uranium. Energy Northwest will utilize a portion of the low enriched uranium for its 1,150 MW Columbia Nuclear Generating Station in Washington, and will sell the remainder of the U.S.-origin low enriched uranium to TVA for use in TVA’s reactors.TVA will supply the power for the re-enrichment under an agreement to extend the existing USEC-TVA power contract.

The DOE approved the transaction on May 15 following approvals by the USEC, TVA and Energy Northwest boards of directors. Both Energy Northwest and TVA plan to use the enriched uranium in their reactors over many years, so as to not have a material adverse impact on the markets.

The agreement calls for DOE to provide Energy Northwest with approximately 9,000 metric tons of high-assay depleted uranium. USEC will enrich the tails to make about 480 metric tons of low enriched uranium. The work, combined with other ongoing USEC commercial obligations, will require approximately five million separative work units (SWU), a standard measure of uranium enrichment that represents the effort that is required to increase the concentration of the U-235 isotope in the uranium.

The work will take about 12 months and supports a one-year extension of Paducah enrichment operations.

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Nuclear power plant maintenance contract awarded to Shaw

Wed, 16 May 2012 13:14:00 GMT

The Shaw Group Inc. (NYSE: SHAW) said it has signed a new contract with Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Corp. to provide maintenance and other support services to its single-unit, 1,200 MW nuclear power plant northeast of Burlington, Kan.

The undisclosed value of the three-year contract will be included in Shaw’s Plant Services segment’s backlog of unfilled orders in the third quarter of fiscal year 2012.

Wolf Creek Nuclear Operating Corp. is a subsidiary of three owners: Kansas City Power & Light, a Great Plains Energy company (NYSE: GXP) that owns 47 percent; Kansas Gas and Electric, a Westar Energy company (NYSE: WR) that also owns 47 percent; and Kansas Electric Power Co-op (6 percent).

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Nuclear waste storage tanks filled as part of operational closure

Tue, 15 May 2012 19:57:00 GMT

Two underground radioactive waste tanks at the Savannah River Site (SRS) in South Carolina have been filled with more than 1 million gallons of grout as part of the operational closing of the tanks.

Filling on tanks 18 and 19 started on April 2. More than 1 million gallons of specially formulated cement-like grout have been pumped into the two 1.3 million gallon tanks, putting the closure of the tanks ahead of schedule, SRS said in a release. During the grouting process, as many as six cement trucks an hour were operating as many as 10 hours a day, five days a week, delivering the grout to fill the waste tanks.

Savannah River Remediation’s (SRR) grouting of the underground tanks, ancillary piping and equipment will continue until late summer before the tanks are operationally closed.

SRS is owned by the U.S. Department of Energy. The SRS Liquid Waste contract is managed by SRR, a team of companies led by URS Corp. (NYSE: URS) with partners in Bechtel National, CH2M Hill and Babcock & Wilcox (NYSE: BWC). Subcontractors for the contract are Areva, Energy Solutions and URS Safety Management Solutions.

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Uranium exploration project acquired by UEC

Tue, 15 May 2012 13:51:00 GMT

Uranium Energy Corp. (UEC) said it has acquired the rights to explore for uranium on the Channen Project, a 10,704-acre property in southern Goliad County, Texas. The project is on the Goliad trend within the South Texas Uranium Belt, and is approximately 50 miles to the southeast of UEC’s Hobson uranium processing facility.

UEC said the new property was initially identified after analyzing a group of logs exhibiting gamma-ray anomalies displaying uranium roll-front deposit type characteristics in several sandstone formations.

Company geologists are currently planning an exploration program to include a drilling campaign that will be initiated upon receipt of exploration permits from the Railroad Commission of Texas. It is anticipated that the drill program will initially consist of a statistical grid covering the entire 10,704-acre property.

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Japanese town approves restart of nuclear power plants

Tue, 15 May 2012 13:46:00 GMT

Officials in the Japanese town of Ohi have approved the restart of two nuclear power reactors in Fukui prefecture, according to the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI). After a briefing from the central government and Kansai Electric Power Co., NEI said the Ohi assembly agreed that restarting the reactors is necessary to maintain jobs and the town’s finances.

The town is waiting on the mayor’s decision.

Also in May, Japan’s National Federation of Small Business Associations asked the government to restart the nation’s nuclear reactors to stabilize the power supply, NEI said. The association told Industry Minister Yukio Edano that an increase in electricity rates would devastate small businesses.

Hokkaido Electric Power Co.’s Tomari 3, Japan’s last operating commercial nuclear reactor, shut down for regular inspections May 5, 2012, marking the first time in 42 years that Japan has not had a reactor generating electricity. Prior to the Fukushima Daiichi disaster in March 2011, the country had 50 operating reactors that generated over 44,000 MW, or about 30 percent of the nation’s demand.

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Areva, Mitsubishi partner to explore for uranium in Australia

Tue, 15 May 2012 13:28:00 GMT

Areva and Mitsubishi Corp., through their subsidiaries Afmeco Mining and Exploration Pty Ltd (AFMEX) and Mitsubishi Development Pty. Ltd. (MDP), said they will partner in a uranium exploration program in Australia.

The companies said exploration will be conducted for several years across tens of thousands of square kilometers of Australia where little or no previous exploration has yet been undertaken.

Under the terms of the agreement entered into between both companies, MDP will cover 100 percent of AFMEX’s exploration expenditure for several years up to a predetermined amount. Once the threshold is reached and if MDP confirms its interest, MDP will have the option to acquire 49 percent of the uranium exploration permits held by AFMEX in Australia and enter into a joint venture owned 51 percent by AFMEX and 49 percent by MDP. The operations of the new joint venture will be managed by AFMEX.

Australia produced nearly 6,200 tons (about 16.1 million pounds) of uranium in 2011. It is the world’s number three uranium producer behind Kazakhstan and Canada.

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North Anna nuclear power plant to have more NRC oversight

Mon, 14 May 2012 19:19:00 GMT

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) said it will increase oversight at the North Anna nuclear power plant in Virginia because of a violation of low to moderate safety significance related to the maintenance of the plant’s emergency diesel generators. North Anna is operated by Dominion (NYSE: D).

The NRC’s staff determined that a violation involving failure of plant personnel to establish and maintain appropriate maintenance procedures for the plant’s diesel generators is a “white” finding, or one of low to moderate safety significance. The violation stems from the failure of one of the four emergency generators after the August 23 earthquake in the area. The earthquake did not cause the failure, an NRC release said, and repairs were completed a short time later. Further inspections determined that the plant’s maintenance procedures did not provide adequate guidance for installing specific gaskets on the generators. Dominion has since revised its maintenance procedures.

The NRC placed North Anna in the Regulatory Response Column on the NRC Action Matrix, meaning the plant will be subject to additional NRC inspections beyond the usual ones that are conducted at all nuclear plants.

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NRC to increase oversight of St. Lucie nuclear power unit

Mon, 14 May 2012 18:56:00 GMT

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff said it is increasing its oversight of Unit 1 at Florida Power & Light (FPL)’s St. Lucie nuclear power plant in Florida as a result of the number and type of unplanned shutdowns the plant has experienced.

The NRC quarterly review in April showed that Unit 1 crossed the green-to-white threshold for Unplanned Scrams per 7,000 Critical Hours performance indicator due to one trip in 3Q 2011, one in 4Q 2011 and one in 1Q 2012. In addition, the review also identified that the Unplanned Scrams with Complications performance indicator also crossed the green-to-white threshold due to a complicated trip in 3Q 2011 and 1Q 2012.

NRC placed St. Lucie Unit 1 in the Degraded Cornerstone Column of the Reactor Oversight Process Action Matrix beginning in the first quarter of this year. NRC will conduct a supplemental inspection to provide assurance that the causes of the shutdowns are understood, that the extent of the condition is identified and to ensure FPL’s corrective actions are sufficient.

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Cameco purchases nuclear fuel products firm

Mon, 14 May 2012 18:19:00 GMT

Canadian-based uranium producer Cameco (NYSE: CCJ) said it has signed an agreement with Advent International to purchase NUKEM Energy GmbH (NUKEM), a trader and broker of nuclear fuel products and services.

Under the agreement, Cameco will pay Advent and other shareholders $136 million on closing subject to certain adjustments. The agreement is subject to regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2012.

NUKEM has been involved in the nuclear energy industry for more than 50 years. In 2011, NUKEM's sales were about 12 million pounds of uranium and they expect to sell 10 million to 15 million pounds in 2012.

Following closing, NUKEM will continue to operate as an independent company.

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L-3 Mapps to upgrade simulator at nuclear power plant in Switzerland

Mon, 14 May 2012 14:55:00 GMT

L-3 Mapps will proceed with two projects to update the full scope simulator at Axpo’s 730 MWe Beznau nuclear power plant in Switzerland.

The projects involve Nexis and Autanove updates being performed on the plant’s two operating units. The simulator updates are expected to enter service in the fall of 2013.

As part of the Nexis project, the plant is replacing its existing WDPF-based plant information system with an advanced Ovation-based system from Westinghouse. L-3 Mapps will modify the interface to the existing plant information system to allow communication with the Ovation system.

For the Autanove project, the existing remote hydro plant emergency power supply is being replaced with two on-site diesel generators for each unit. L-3 Mapps will leverage its Orchid Modeling Environment to remodel the electrical emergency power supply, including power distribution. The new diesel generators will be fully simulated with their auxiliary and control systems. The updated simulator must be operational before the plant modifications go into service in order to train the plant operators.

Other related plant changes that will be modeled are the addition of a feeding system to the emergency feedwater system and a seal water pump to the seal injection water supply to the reactor coolant pump, each controlled by Areva’s Teleperm XS.

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Mill opened for production of nuclear plant steam generator tubes

Mon, 14 May 2012 13:19:00 GMT

Sandvik on May 11, 2012, opened a new mill for the manufacturing of stainless steel and high nickel alloy tubes for use in nuclear power plant steam generators.

The mill, in Sandviken, Sweden utilizes the advances in equipment design from tube manufacture, annealing, final finishing, inspection and dispatch.

“The energy sector is a key segment for Sandvik and we see a lot of interesting opportunities for nuclear and steam generator tubing,” said President of Sandvik Materials Technology Jonas Gustavsson.

Work on the site began in 2010 and has involved over 150 people and 330 specialist suppliers up to its completion.

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Nuclear regulators: FP&L must revise COL applications

Fri, 11 May 2012 19:28:00 GMT

Florida Power & Light (FP&L) must make changes to its application for combined construction and operating licenses to build and operate two Westinghouse AP1000 1,100 MW nuclear reactors at its Turkey Point nuclear power plant before the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) can complete its review, according to a letter dated May 4 from the NRC.

In the letter, the NRC said there were two significant issues that are affecting the staff’s ability to complete its safety and environmental reviews of units 6 and 7 at Turkey Point: Geology, seismology and geotechnical engineering and the alternative sites. NRC said many of the responses to 2011 requests for additional information were “either unclear, incomplete or based on conclusions that are not supported by the references provided.” NRC also said that, in some cases, FP&L’s responses reinterpreted data and results of peer-reviewed publications, which resulted in “dismissal of certain geologically recent deformations” that could result in “minimizing the potential seismic hazard in the region without providing sufficient justification.”

The letter said that FP&L did not give an “adequate basis regarding the availability of water” for the Martin, Glades and Okeechobee 2 alternate sites. FP&L also did not give an “adequate response regarding the potential to use treated waste water at locations other than the Turkey Point site,” and that the company has not “provided adequate clarification regarding the use of land area as a screening criterion for sites.”

The NRC said it cannot continue to review those areas of the application without the revised information and cannot issue a schedule for completing the overall review until the modifications are made.

An FP&L spokesman said in Platts that the company will re-review the information, and that the submittals identified as deficient were completed under an agency-approved quality assurance program.

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Nuclear power plant returns to service after outage

Fri, 11 May 2012 15:09:00 GMT

FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Co. (FENOC), a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE), said the 911 MW Unit 1 at the Beaver Valley Power Station in Shippingport, Pa., returned to service May 11, 2012 following an April 9, 2012, shutdown for refueling and maintenance.

During the outage, 65 of the 157 fuel assemblies were exchanged and safety inspections were successfully conducted. In addition, numerous maintenance and improvement projects were completed to ensure continued safe and reliable operations.

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First shipment for nuclear power plant arrives in South Carolina

Fri, 11 May 2012 14:16:00 GMT

The South Carolina Ports Authority said the first project cargo shipment for Westinghouse Electric Co. arrived at the Port of Charleston’s Columbus Street Terminal on May 9. The shipment, which is one in a series of deliveries over the next several years, is being shipped through the port to support South Carolina Electric & Gas Co.’s (SCE&G) nuclear plant expansion at the V.C. Summer plant near Columbia, S.C.

From the port, the cargo will travel on rail cars and trucks to SCE&G’s project site.

“This is a project that will boost port volume and maritime jobs over the course of several years,” said Jim Newsome, president and CEO of the South Carolina Ports Authority.

The Ports Authority said the deliveries to the V.C. Summer plant involve handling about 24,000 tons of equipment. A total of about 30 ships will deliver machinery and equipment for delivery by rail and truck to the site.

SCE&G is building two Westinghouse AP1000 reactors at the V.C. Summer site after receiving its combined construction and operating licenses from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in March.

V.C. Summer Units 2 and 3 are expected to complete by 2018.

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CEZ seeking partner to help complete nuclear power plant in Czech Republic

Fri, 11 May 2012 13:29:00 GMT

Czech Republic utility CEZ Energy said it intends to consider the possibility of a strategic partnership in the completion of the Temelín Nuclear Power Station. Currently, the Temelín station houses two VVER 1000 Type V 320 pressurized water reactors that generate about 2,000 MW, the largest source of power in the Czech Republic.

CEZ said it is usual that nuclear projects in Europe are built and operated by consortiums, while making reference to the EDF and Enel partnership constructing the Flamanville project in France. CEZ has received bids from several parties and said the partnership selection will take place after the contract with a supplier is signed, which is expected to happen in 2013.

"CEZ is prepared to fund the project using its own resources and available debt capacities; however, there are many other interesting investment opportunities, which the CEZ Group might reach if a strategic partner joins the consortium,” said Daniel Beneš, chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO of CEZ.

“CEZ may also profit from the strategic partnership by acquiring new know-how connected with the building of nuclear power stations."

CEZ said the market analyses show that it is possible to invite more than ten energy companies, most of which are based in Europe, which either have already shown interest or may become interested in negotiations about such partnership.

The Temelín expansion is expected to be complete near 2020.

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Cost rises on nuclear power project in Georgia

Fri, 11 May 2012 13:13:00 GMT

In its quarterly report to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Southern Co. (NYSE: SO) said the consortium in charge of building two new Westinghouse AP1000 nuclear power reactors at Plant Vogtle in Georgia has informed the company it will cost an additional $400 million to complete the reactors by the scheduled completion date.

Southern Co. said in the filing that during the course of construction activities, issues have arisen that may impact the project budget and schedule.

“The Owners and the Consortium have begun negotiations regarding these issues, including the assertion by the Consortium that the Owners are responsible for these costs under the terms of the Vogtle 3 and 4 Agreement,” the statement read.

Vogtle Unit 3 is expected to enter service in 2016, with Unit 4 expected to connect to the grid in 2017.
Georgia Power, which received permission from the Georgia Public Service Commission to charge its customers $1.7 billion of the company’s $6.1 billion in costs before the plants enter service, said it “has not agreed with the amount of these proposed adjustments or that the owners have responsibility for any costs related to these issues.”

“Georgia Power expects negotiations with the Consortium to continue over the next several months during which time the parties will attempt to reach a mutually acceptable compromise of their positions,” the filing said.

Georgia Power, which has a 45 percent stake in the project, said if a compromise cannot be reached, formal dispute resolution, including litigation, may follow.

“If these costs are imposed upon the Owners, Georgia Power would seek an amendment to the certified cost of Plant Vogtle Units 3 and 4, if necessary,” the filing said. “Additional claims by the Consortium or Georgia Power (on behalf of the Owners) are expected to arise throughout the construction of Plant Vogtle Units 3 and 4.”

The Department of Energy in February 2010 awarded Soutern Co. an $8.3 billion loan guarantee for the project.

Including the $400 million listed in the May 7 SEC filing, The Washington Post reported that cost overruns for the Vogtle project have now reached $900 million.

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NRC to hold workshop for nuclear power vendors

Thu, 10 May 2012 21:29:00 GMT

For vendors interested in taking part in the nuclear power expansion in the U.S., the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) will explain its oversight process during a workshop June 28, 2012 in Baltimore.

“Vendors’ quality products and expertise are vital to ensuring new reactors are built to operate safely,” said Laura Dudes, director of the Division of Construction Inspection in the NRC’s Office of New Reactors. “We want to ensure current and potential vendors understand our requirements, and how rigorously we oversee construction sites and the vendors themselves.”

Presenters will include NRC staff, the Nuclear Procurement Issues Committee (NUPIC), the Nuclear Energy Institute, the Electric Power Research Institute and current nuclear vendors.

A Southern Co. (NYSE: SO)-led consortium is building two Westinghouse 1,117 MW AP1000 reactors at the existing Plant Vogtle site in Georgia. South Carolina Electric & Gas Co. and Santee Cooper are also constructing two AP1000 reactors at its V.C. Summer plant in South Carolina.

The NRC said the workshop brings together members of the public, licensees, applicants, vendors, basic component suppliers, industry organizations, and the NRC staff to discuss issues including:

Vendor oversight for new reactor construction;
Quality assurance rulemaking activities;
International calibration laboratories;
Current activities to prevent the use of counterfeit, fraudulent, or suspect items;
Using commercial-grade items in safety-related applications;
Software quality assurance; and
Non-reactor vendor inspections.

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NRC manager accused of intimidating inspectors, blocking safety concerns

Thu, 10 May 2012 15:31:00 GMT

A manager at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s Region IV office in Arlington, Texas is accused of blocking safety concerns from staff at the Fort Calhoun nuclear power plant in Nebraska and intimidating inspectors who raised those concerns, according to The Wall Street Journal.

According to the article, a letter from April 24 was sent to Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), a ranking member of the House energy committee, and the five commissioners, signed from the Region IV staff. The letter said the manager, Troy Pruett, had berated and intimidated inspectors for bringing up safety concerns and downplayed those concerns in discussions with his superiors.

The letter also stated that when the staff brought their concerns to senior management at the NRC’s regional office in Texas, the managers made “only token” efforts to address them, the article said.

The letter also alleges that Pruett tried to override inspectors’ conclusions about Fort Calhoun after the plant suffered a fire in June 2011 that qualified as a “red” event, a ranking of high safety significance. However, Pruitt allegedly told his superiors that the plant issues were “not significant” and that the staff agreed with him, the article said. The letter also said that in at least two cases, workers received downgrades in their performance appraisals after bringing up violations.

Markey sent a letter to NRC Chairman Gregory Jaczko calling for an independent investigation in the matter, according to the article.

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