Ever wondered about life without electricity? Us neither.
Read here on how we keep it going. 

Uranium miners are racing to revive projects mothballed after the Fukushima disaster more than a decade ago, spurred by renewed demand for nuclear energy and a leap in yellowcake prices after Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Reuters

Unloved since Fukushima, uranium is hot again for miners

The new nuclear power station being built at Hinkley Point will start operating a year later than planned and will cost an extra £3 billion, it has been announced.

The Independent

Hinkley Point C nuclear power station delayed again as cost goes up by £3bn

With 55 gigawatts (GW) of installed power capacity, the war-torn nation can produce more electricity than it currently needs. That presents an opportunity for both Kyiv and the energy-starved European Union.

Ukraine’s spare energy can help itself and Europe

Failures in the government’s investment strategy mean the taxpayer has contributed £10.7bn in just two years. 

The Guardian

UK nuclear power stations’ decommissioning cost soars to £23.5bn

It doesn’t even work yet, but nuclear fusion has encountered a shortage of tritium, the key fuel source for the most prominent experimental reactors.

Wired

Nuclear Fusion Is Already Facing a Fuel Crisis

The U.S. Department of Energy said on Wednesday it has extended a deadline by 47 days, to July 5 for nuclear power plants to apply for federal funding to keep them running.

U.S. extends application deadline for nuclear power rescue program Reuters

Anglesey is where the government’s new energy strategy and its economic vision meet, but some locals are sceptical.

Bloomberg

Brexit Britain’s Nuclear Future May Lie on a Welsh Island

Obsolete and bad information is plaguing the debate around new nuclear power developments in Scotland, according to one of the UK’s leading energy lawyers.

Energy Voice

Scotland’s nuclear debate lacks ‘detailed facts’ needed to ensure energy security

The Nuclear Reactor Construction market report shows the competitive scenario of the major market players dependent on the sales income, client requests, organization profile, and the business tactics utilized in the market.

Digital Journal 

Nuclear Reactor Construction Market to Witness Notable Growth by 2030  Read more: https://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/nuclear-reactor-construction-market-to-witness-notable-growth-by-2030-areva-hitachi-ge-nuclear-energy-mitsubishi-heavy-industries-etc#ixzz7TjMb5WsQ

Wind, solar, and hydro are popular options, but equal consideration should also be given to nuclear energy and power generation. But many environmentalists are wary of the potential impacts of nuclear disasters...

Earth.Org

Is Nuclear Energy Clean: Nuclear and its Role in Sustainable Development

Electricite de France SA’s Hinkley Point B nuclear plant could be kept open to help the UK alleviate a power supply crunch in the winter.

EDF Nuclear Plant’s Shutdown Could Be Delayed to Avoid UK Crunch

Japan's Nuclear Regulation Authority granted initial approval on Wednesday for Tokyo Electric Power's plan for releasing water from the destroyed Fukushima nuclear power plant into the sea, citing there are no safety issues.

Fukushima water release plan gets initial OK from Japan regulator

Migrating away from Russian supply chains has become a priority, and Europe is looking at nuclear as one possible alternative. But opinions about nuclear energy vary throughout the European Union...

Columbia SIPA

War Promotes Fresh Look at Nuclear Energy in Europe

Japan's nuclear regulator on Wednesday approved plans by the operator of the wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant to release its treated radioactive wastewater into the sea next year, saying the outlined methods are safe and risks to the environment minimal.

Tech Xplore

Japan OKs plan to release Fukushima nuclear plant wastewater

Every morning, each nuclear electricity generator in the United States reports its operating status to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). The NRC compiles this information in its Power Reactor Status Report, and we present that information in interactive visualizations on our Status of Nuclear Outages page. Our analysis tool combines the NRC daily status with data gathered from our Annual Electric Generator Report and Monthly Update to the Annual Electric Generator Report. The page includes two maps showing the capacity and outage status of U.S. nuclear plants.

EIA Product Highlight: Status of U.S. Nuclear Outages

One of the world’s oldest nuclear fuel reprocessing plants will conclude its mission later this year.

GOV.UK

Operations to end at Sellafield’s Magnox Reprocessing Plant

Nearly 200 people have marched against plans for Sizewell C, a £20 billion nuclear plant on the east coast of England.

Energy Live News

Hundreds protest against Sizewell C nuclear power station

Promises of jobs and investment are doing little to convince a remote Lincolnshire community to agree to hosting the country’s nuclear waste

‘It’s a bribe’: the coastal areas that could become the UK’s nuclear dump

Hungary claims its geography and heritage make abandoning Russian energy impossible. These are almost believable excuses, so long as one ignores all of the country’s neighbors and its own energy policies.

Forbes

Viktor Orban’s Goulash Energy Policy Makes Hungary Putin’s Trojan Horse In Europe

Dozens of environmental and anti-nuclear organizations expressed opposition Tuesday to any attempt to extend the life of California's last operating nuclear power plant, challenging suggestions that its electricity is needed to meet potential future shortages in the nation's most populous state.

Environmentalists oppose more life for California nuke plant

To keep the lights on in NASA's Artemis human lunar outpost, Sandia National Laboratories is developing electrical micro-grids to handle the power distribution including the Moon base's mini nuclear reactors...

New Atlas

Sandia developing micro-grids to power future Moon base

Researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) have designed and demonstrated a simple particle separation technology that may decrease the time and money needed for radioactive waste cleanup.

CleanTechnica

Size Matters For Speeding Up Nuclear Waste Cleanup

The Business Secretary is to fly to the US this week to drum up American investment in new nuclear plants amid concerns that the UK is too reliant on China for help building reactors in Britain...

The Telegraph

Kwasi Kwarteng seeks US investment for UK nuclear plants to end reliance on China

The Jordanian Uranium Mining Company announced that its extraction plant had produced 20 kilos of yellowcake from 160 tons of uranium ore.

Arab News

Jordan announces uranium production

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s brutal war against the Ukrainian people has been a wake-up call for America’s European allies, exposing critical national security vulnerabilities...

The Hill

 America’s neglect of nuclear energy has weakened our global influence

Germany will vote against the European Commission's controversial "taxonomy" proposal that classes nuclear energy as green but won't file a lawsuit against it...

Politico

Germany to vote against EU plan to label nuclear as green but won’t sue

The world’s hunger for energy is not going suddenly vanish. Viable replacements need to be found

Netflix’s Three Mile Island documentary highlights the real issue with nuclear power: people

The final decision on plans for a £20bn large-scale nuclear plant on the east coast of England has been delayed.



Sizewell C: UK Government delays decision on nuclear power plant Published

The Business Secretary has said the UK's Government’s nuclear power push may initially increase energy bills.

 Business Secretary says building nuclear power plants may increase energy bills

The Future Nuclear Enabling Fund aims to support the government's ambition to approve eight new reactors by 2030

Business Green

'British Nuclear Renaissance': Government announces £120m fund to help innovators enter sector

The SNP should ditch its “ideological opposition” to nuclear power in an attempt to lower people’s energy bills, a UK minister has said.

The Times

Nuclear option is best way to lower bills, SNP warned

Cleaning up legacy radioactive waste from nuclear weapons production has been a daunting, lengthy, and expensive process.

Size matters for speeding up nuclear waste cleanup

Russia's control of Ukraine's largest functioning nuclear plant is posing "a very real danger" and is not yet a resolved issue according to the Atomic Energy Agency chief.

Express

Warning as Russian control of Ukrainian nuclear plant poses ‘very real danger’, says IAEA

Since the 1970s, members of the Prairie Island Indian Community of Minnesota have lived in the shadow of a nuclear power plant. And nuclear waste is stored next to the reservation.

Yale Climate Connections

Prairie Island Indian Community uses nuclear waste fund for net-zero carbon goal

An updated financial report from one of the owners of the Plant Vogtle nuclear expansion in Georgia shows the cost to build two new reactors has now topped $30 billion, more than double the original price tag expected for the project.



POWER Magazine

Vogtle Nuclear Expansion Price Tag Tops $30 Billion

The Board of Management of the UAE’s Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation (FANR) has recently approved FANR’s strategy for 2023 to 2026, where it details its future roadmap in regulating the nuclear and radiological sectors in the UAE.



Utilities Middle East

UAE’s nuclear regulator approves roadmap for 2023-2026

The U.K. is planning to significantly expand its nuclear capability, in an effort to decrease its reliance on carbon-based fossil fuels. The government is aiming to construct up to eight new reactors over the next couple of decades, with a view to increasing power capacity from approximately 8 gigawatts (GW) today to 24GW by 2050. This would meet around 25% of the forecast U.K. energy demand, compared to around 16% in 2020.

The future of nuclear waste: What's the plan and can it be safe?

A new nuclear reactor plant in Essex is at risk of collapse because of political opposition to a Chinese investor’s involvement, French energy giant EDF has warned.

Nuclear plant under threat amid ‘political opposition’ to Chinese backing, EDF warns

In recent weeks, the EU has again shown clarity of thought when faced by another crisis, this time a war on its borders, to further deepen the decarbonization of its energy system whilst at the same time increasing the continent’s energy security.

The Ukraine War Will Accelerate Europe’s Energy Transition

The invasion of Ukraine could be a turning point for nuclear power and carbon budgets

Anthropocene Magazine 

Is Europe About to Push the Other Nuclear Button?

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has launched an initiative to develop a roadmap for the commercial deployment of hydrogen production using nuclear energy.

World Nuclear News

IAEA to create roadmap for nuclear hydrogen deployment

The U.K. will introduce new laws for energy to enable a fast build-out of renewables and nuclear power stations as set out in the government’s energy security strategy last month.

U.K. Plans New Energy Law to Enable Renewable, Nuclear Build Out

Democratic Governor of California told that he is taking action to hold off on closing down the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant, which was set to be shut down over the next few years. 

The Daily Wire

Newsom Open To Keeping Major Nuclear Plant Operating In California

A new study shows how future inhabitants of the Red Planet could run on either energy source, depending on where they set up camp.

Mars Colonies Will Need Solar Power—and Nuclear Too

Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on Thursday that it would use nuclear reactors to help reduce its own and other countries' dependence on Russian energy.

Japan to use nuclear to cut dependence on Russian energy

Working with Intel, Google, and colleagues at Dartmouth College, Princeton researchers have completely redesigned the technology for powering high-performance computers, resulting in systems that increase power delivery 10 times beyond the current state of the art.

Vertical thinking broke the bottleneck in powering high-performance computers

Contract with Rosatom terminated as war in Ukraine deals final blow to controversial energy project

Financial Times

Finnish group abandons plans for Russia-backed nuclear power plant

High energy prices in the UK have led to the worst cost-of-living increases in decades with economists warning inflation could breach 10% this year. Households faced a record energy bill spike of 54% at the beginning of April and are set to rise again in October. Prime Minister Boris Johnson wants more nuclear power generation. 

Can A Nuclear Power Boost Save Inflation-Ridden British Energy Economy?

Commodities investors see uranium as a rising star, a material needed for nuclear power in a world moving away from fossil fuels. For the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, investing in it is another story. 



Mining.com

Uranium still drawing investors as SEC rejects Sprott US fund

Power & Utilities | Nuclear

Baltic Power plans to carry out a prequalification for tendering covering several equipment supplies and services to support the offshore construction activities on the 1.2 GW Baltic Power wind farm in the Polish Baltic Sea.

Offshore Wind

Baltic Power Seeks Offshore Construction Services & Equipment Providers

There has never been a need to restart GB’s electricity system from scratch and the prospect remains improbable, National Grid ESO has said.

Could renewables restart Britain’s grid in the event of a power outage?

Our Natural Gas Storage Dashboard provides daily and weekly contextual information to the Weekly Natural Gas Storage Report (WNGSR), which contains our latest weekly natural gas storage estimates. The dashboard shows storage activity in several regions of the Lower 48 states and key market fundamentals that affect underground natural gas storage activity.

EIA Product Highlight: Natural Gas Storage Dashboard

As of this month, Ørsted’s Borkum Riffgrund 1 offshore wind farm has been providing […]

Borkum Riffgrund 1 First German Offshore Wind Farm Balancing Grid

Chancellor under mounting pressure to help households cope with rising utility bills

Truss warns Sunak against windfall tax on UK energy sector

In our Summer Electricity Outlook, a supplement to our May 2022 Short-Term Energy Outlook, we expect the largest increases in U.S. electric power sector generation this summer will come from renewable energy sources. These increases are the result of new capacity additions. We forecast utility-scale solar generation between June and August 2022 will grow by 10 million megawatthours (MWh) compared with the same period last summer, and wind generation will grow by 8 million MWh. Forecast generation from coal and natural gas declines by 26 million MWh this summer, although natural gas generation could increase in some electricity markets where coal supplies are constrained.

EIA expects solar and wind to be larger sources of U.S. electricity generation this summer

Within days of Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, Russia’s financial system seemed on the verge of collapse. The West imposed a range of financial sanctions, notably on the Russian central bank’s foreign-exchange reserves, that sent the rouble plunging and led citizens to withdraw cash frantically. Then the central bank raised interest rates, imposed capital controls and injected liquidity into the banking system, and some of these misfortunes reversed. Although a chunk of Russia’s currency reserves remains frozen, the country still generates about $1bn a day from its energy exports.



The Economist

Russia is on track for a record trade surplus

For decades, oil and gas companies expected to have an enterprise value fairly close to their PV-10 calculations in their annual reserve report.  That’s not the case these days.  The reserve report’s relevance has waned.  They are not obsolete, but investors are focused on other things.

Have Reserve Reports Been Relegated To Investor Footnotes?

Brazil's newly appointed mines and energy minister, Adolfo Sachsida, said on Wednesday he will request studies on Petrobras' privatization as his first act in office.

Brazil's new energy minister wants studies on Petrobras privatization

In January 2022, natural gas consumed for electric power in the United States averaged 31.6 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d), the highest January average on record and the highest amount for any winter month. Natural gas consumed for electric power this past January was higher than in previous Januaries because of high demand for electricity throughout a colder-than-average January combined with less coal-fired electric power generation.

Natural gas consumed by U.S. electric power sector sets January record in 2022

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will have long-term consequences for EU energy markets. This will bring uncertainty and in some cases the need for a shift in strategy for EU utilities.

Fitch Ratings

The Long-Term Impact of Disruption to EU Energy

The Federal Reserve's favourite inflation-related adjective used to be transitory, as in Inflation is transitory and price increases should be temporary. That is no longer the case.

How long will inflation last? The answer lies in the past

UK households struggling with the surging energy costs are being tempted into "buy now, pay later" financing schemes to spread out the payments on their electricity and gas bills as the cost of living crisis deepens.

UK households resort to ‘buy now pay later’ loans to cover energy bills

Looks like India hasn’t learnt from similar experiences in the past. Even though coal stocks run critically low at power plants, it’s not possible for Coal India to meet the rising demand alone. What has added fuel to the fire is non-payment of dues by discoms to power plants, miscalculations on domestic coal production, imports, allocation, and logistics.

Economic Times

Inside India’s power crisis: an overworked coal miner, a mountain of dues, slow scaling green energy

Rates have jumped because of a surge in natural gas prices and could keep rising rapidly for years as utilities invest in electric grids.

The New York Times

Get Ready for Another Energy Price Spike: High Electric Bills

This month, I am in Europe, which will cumulate in being in Davos for the World Economic Forum. Europe is in the midst of a massive energy crisis, with surging prices for gas and electricity that have reached unprecedented levels. One of the recurring conversations that keeps coming up is the global economy and how Europe and the rest of the world replace Russian energy. 

Big Opportunity For Greece At World Economic Forum

Batteries do the heavy lifting to store excess solar energy on power grids for use after sundown, but to operate, they also rely on pricey elements like platinum.
University of Alberta researcher Matthew Labbe would rather leave the precious metals to the jewelers, by using cheaper materials to tweak a disposable battery commonly used in hearing aids.


Building a better, cheaper battery for power grids

The 30 MW EolMed floating wind project offshore France's Mediterranean coast has secured EUR 85 million in financing from the European Investment Bank (EIB). 

French Floater Secures EIB Financing

The war in Ukraine and the resulting European sanctions on Russia have dramatically affected energy and commodity prices. The combination of supply uncertainty, expensive energy, and rising material costs has added urgency to the already critical need to embrace sustainable, locally available alternatives such as wood. 

Wooden buildings are a sustainable alternative in the face of global steel shortages

Batteries do the heavy lifting to store excess solar energy on power grids for use after sundown, but to operate, they also rely on pricey elements like platinum.

However, the investments cover 24.6GW, which is a record for new capacity financed in a single year, the report said.

Renews

Europe invests €41bn in new wind farms in 2021

Energy regulator has laid out £14mn on consultants this year and seen loss of experienced staff

Ofgem spends millions on advice as it battles soaring UK energy costs 

As of January 2021, the United States had almost 200 gigawatts (GW) of electric generating capacity that could functionally switch fuels, or about 18% of the total 1,116 GW of utility-scale electric generating capacity. About two-thirds, or 745 GW, of all utility-scale generating capacity involved technologies that could potentially use multiple energy sources, such as combustion turbines and steam turbines, as opposed to 371 GW of capacity that are single-source technologies such as wind turbines, hydroelectric dams, and nuclear reactors.

About 20% of U.S. electric power generating capacity can operate on multiple fuels

Grok Ventures has acquired an 11.3% stake in AGL Energy through derivative transactions for about A$650 million ($461 million), making the investment vehicle controlled by billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes the Australian utility's biggest shareholder. Through Galipea Partnership, Grok bought 56.78 million AGL shares at A$8.62 each in a loan and equity transaction with JPMorgan Securities, according to a regulatory filing on Monday. 

Billionaire Climate Activist Mike Cannon-Brookes Invests $461 Million In AGL To Block Demerger

The facility, in Sherman County, provides electricity to Puget Sound Energy (PSE), helping the supplier meet its goals to reduce carbon dioxide emissions while providing additional capacity to serve customers, particularly during winter periods of high electricity demand.


Avangrid starts up 200MW Oregon wind 

High Electric Bills Get Ready for Another Energy Price Spike: High Electric Bills

Climate activist wants to block Australian energy company’s proposed demerger

Tech billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes launches corporate raid on power producer AGL

In 1988 steve guttenberg, a comic actor, appeared on a British talk show. At one point he was asked why he had not appeared in “Police Academy 5”, having starred in the earlier films. He replied that, in his view, all the important philosophical questions had been addressed in the first four movies.



Slow pain or fast pain? The implications of low investment yields

The US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) plans to hold the next Gulf of Maine Intergovernmental Renewable Energy Task Force meeting on 19 May as part of the agency’s work on refining the process for identifying a Wind Energy Area in the Gulf of Maine that is suitable for leasing.



BOEM to Talk Gulf of Maine Offshore Wind Next Month

Groups face few potential buyers, costly exit options and uncertain prospects for any future return

Companies trying to exit Russia have to ‘dance with the devil’

Robert Schwartz, president and CEO of Anterix, a company that provides private LTE networks for electric grid modernization, is devoid of managerial eccentricities.

The Art Of Leadership, And How To Sell To The Electric Utilities

Reluctance to open wallets probably reflects frustration with Joe Biden’s energy policy

Big Oil: companies have chosen not to spend big on investment

Oil giant Shell (LON: SHEL) has struck a £1.2 billion deal to acquire Indian renewables company Sprng Energy.


Shell snaps up Indian renewable energy company for £1.2bn

Even as russia has invaded Ukraine, terrorised civilians and flattened Mariupol, the European Union has spent €44bn ($46bn) buying its oil and gas. That could be about to change. On April 27th Russia announced that it had stopped supplying gas to Bulgaria and Poland, which had refused its demand to pay in roubles. Because the eu can easily buy oil, but not gas, from elsewhere, Russia is attempting to exploit its point of vulnerability.



You can’t miss it!

Latest on Power & Utilities