Oconee Nuclear Station Projects Honored with Three Awards by the Nuclear Energy Institute

SENECA, S.C., May 23, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Duke Energy's Oconee Nuclear Station has received the Nuclear Energy Institute's (NEI) prestigious "Best of the Best" Award for the first digital upgrade of a nuclear safety-related system in the U.S.

The award was presented during NEI's Nuclear Energy Assembly on May 23, 2012, in Charlotte, N.C.

Oconee's digital upgrade of a reactor protection system (RPS) and engineered safeguards protection system (ESPS) also received the NEI Vision and Leadership Award. Oconee partnered with AREVA Inc. for this nuclear industry "first-of-a kind" project. 

NEI's Maintenance Process Award recognized Oconee's use of a single-pass, fully automated system for steam generator inspection. Duke Energy partnered with Babcock & Wilcox Nuclear Energy Inc. on this effort.

Presented annually, NEI's Top Industry Practice awards recognize innovations that improve safety, efficiency and nuclear plant performance. The Best of the Best Award recognizes the most significant achievement in the nuclear industry during 2012. 

"Duke Energy and the Oconee team are honored to receive national recognition for these two projects," said Oconee site Vice President Preston Gillespie. "This is the first digital upgrade of a safety-related nuclear plant system in the United States and the first use of enhanced, automated steam generator inspection technology."

The RPS/ESPS digital system addresses the obsolescence of analog equipment, further protects the integrity of the nuclear fuel and incorporates system enhancements into the overall design. These enhancements include visual, online monitoring and diagnostic capabilities. 

The new digital system was installed on unit 1 during the spring 2011 Oconee refueling outage. The system is being installed on unit 3 as part of the current refueling outage and will be installed on unit 2 in 2013.

During a typical Oconee outage, preventive maintenance work is conducted on numerous systems, including each unit's twin steam generators. This new steam generator inspection technology was used for the first time during the 2011 Oconee Unit 1 and 2 refueling outages. 

This single-pass, fully automated system incorporates a robot and new analytical tools that further enhance safety and reduce the time and labor needed to perform steam generator inspections. 

"These two awards recognize the achievements of the project teams at Oconee and our corporate headquarters. Engineers, technicians and others worked diligently to install and ensure these systems functioned as designed," said Gillespie. 

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New Brunswick nuclear plant reports second spill in 6 months Read more:

LEPREAU, N.B. — About 300 litres of radioactive heavy water spilled during a test at a New Brunswick nuclear power plant, making it the second spill at the site in less than six months. NB Power said in a statement that the water spilled Monday at the Point Lepreau nuclear power plant, Atlantic Canada's only nuclear facility.
The spill happened when a test equipment relief valve opened prematurely as officials were working on the plant's refurbishment, said Rod Eagles, the refurbishment project director for the provincial Crown utility company. Heavy water then overflowed from a collection system inside the reactor building.
"Unfortunately, the amount of water was greater than what we expected and overflowed to the floor and the test was ceased immediately," he said in an interview Thursday.
He said the water has been recovered for reuse and there is no risk to workers, the public or the environment. About four workers conducting the test left the area and were tested with two cleanup workers for any exposure to radioactive material.
He said none showed any signs of abnormal doses of radioactivity.
Eagles said NB Power has launched an investigation into the spill, adding that it was too early to say what caused the incident. He expects to have more information over the next week and then continue the so-called hydrostatic test.
In December, four to six lit res of radioactive heavy water spilled because of a leak at the plant, which prompted an evacuation. No one was hurt.
"This event is fundamentally different than the event that occurred in December 2011," NB Power said in its statement. "There were no requirements to evacuate the reactor building as the spill occurred in a room that was designed to contain and collect heavy water."
Point Lepreau has been out of service since March 2008 for a major refurbishment that's meant to extend the life of the reactor by 25 years.
The project is about three years behind schedule and $1 billion over the original $1.4-billion budget.
It is scheduled to return to service this fall and Eagles said this latest incident shouldn't delay that.


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New Survey Finds Strong Support For Nuclear Energy Among Pennsylvanians

Nearly 80 percent of Pennsylvanians support nuclear power as a reliable energy source 

HARRISBURG, Pa., May 24, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- The Pennsylvania Energy Alliance today released the results of a new statewide survey that shows a strong majority of Pennsylvanians continue to support the use of nuclear energy. 

The poll of 700 Pennsylvania residents found that nearly 9 of 10 respondents believe the use of nuclear power is an important part of meeting the United States' electricity needs. 

"It's quite apparent that people recognize the benefits of nuclear power as a clean, safe and reliable source of energy," said PA Energy Alliance Executive Director Melissa Grimm. "The state needs to have a reliable source of electricity, especially now with summer approaching and our energy demands increasing." 

Other notable results from the Susquehanna Polling & Research poll include: 

79 percent of respondents agree that nuclear is a reliable source of energy

71 percent of respondents support allowing existing nuclear plants to extend their operating licenses

65 percent agree that nuclear power is a safe method of generating electricity

65 percent support the construction of new nuclear power plants in the state 

"This survey clearly shows Pennsylvania's support for nuclear power and its importance to the future energy needs of the Commonwealth," said James Lee from Susquehanna Polling & Research. "It's also interesting to note that for those people who told us they live in close proximity to one of the five nuclear generating facilities in Pennsylvania, 72-percent had a favorable opinion of that facility. The poll tells us that these plants are thought of as 'good neighbors' in their communities." 

To view complete poll results, please visit http://paenergyalliance.com/wp-content/file-uploads/March-2012-Poll-Results.pdf .

About the PA Energy AllianceThe Pennsylvania Energy Alliance for Generating Reliable Electricity for our Energy Needs (PA Energy Alliance) seeks to promote nuclear energy as a clean, safe, reliable and affordable source of power to help meet Pennsylvania's growing demand for electricity. The Alliance is a grassroots coalition that works to increase public awareness of the environmental and economic benefits of nuclear energy and provide a forum through which members can express their support for the continued safe operation of Pennsylvania's five nuclear energy plants.

*The survey of 700 Pennsylvania adults was conducted in March 2012. It was designed and conducted by Susquehanna Polling and Research, Inc. The sample error for the total sample is plus or minus 3.7%. Survey results were generated via a random sample telephone survey.

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Obama taps Yucca Mtn critic to lead nuclear agency

[Commentary:  U.S. nuclear power has just been delivered yet another setback.  Gregory Jaczko hurt the growth of renewable nuclear power and green energy growth and now he is replaced with Allison Macfarlane who is fully endorsed by Harry Reid.  Anyone endorsed by Harry Reid is hardly an ally of nuclear power in the United States.  Expect more delays, cost run ups, regulations, and energy prices to continue to soar.]

By MATTHEW DALY, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Moving quickly to stem a controversy, President Barack Obama on Thursday nominated an expert on nuclear waste to lead the federal agency that regulates the nation's nuclear power plants.
Allison Macfarlane, who served on a presidential commission that studied new strategies to manage nuclear waste, would replace Gregory Jaczko as head of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Jaczko announced his resignation Monday after a tumultuous three-year tenure in which he pushed for sweeping safety reforms but came under fire for an unyielding management style that fellow commissioners and agency employees described as bullying.
A White House spokesman said Obama believes Macfarlane is the right person to lead the commission, calling her a highly regarded expert who has spent years analyzing nuclear issues.
Macfarlane "understands the role that nuclear power must play in our nation's energy future while ensuring that we are always taking steps to produce this important energy source safely and securely," White House spokesman Clark Stevens said.
Stevens called the NRC crucial to protecting public health and safety and said Obama hopes the Senate considers her nomination quickly.
Macfarlane, 48, an associate professor of environmental science and policy at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va., wrote a book in 2006 that raised technical questions about a proposed nuclear waste dump at Nevada's Yucca Mountain.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., who is the leading congressional opponent of the Yucca site, praised Macfarlane as someone who will make nuclear safety a top priority. Macfarlane's education and experience, especially her service on the blue-ribbon commission on nuclear waste, make her qualified to lead the NRC "for the foreseeable future," Reid said in a statement.


Reid said he continues to have concerns about Republican Kristine Svinicki, who has been nominated by Obama for a new term on the commission, but added that he believes Svinicki and Macfarlane should be considered together, continuing a recent Senate tradition of considering NRC nominees from opposing parties at the same time.
Svinicki, a nuclear engineer and former Senate GOP aide, was among four NRC commissioners who publicly criticized Jaczko's management style last year. The commissioners — two Democrats and two Republicans — sent a letter to the White House last fall expressing "grave concern" about Jaczko' s actions, which they said were abusive and "causing serious damage" to the commission.
No disciplinary action was taken against Jaczko, who has strongly denied the allegations.
Jaczko, a Democrat, announced his resignation ahead of a potentially blistering report due out soon from the agency's inspector general, which has been investigating Jaczko's actions for more than a year.
A former Reid aide, Jaczko led a strong response to the nuclear disaster in Japan and was a favorite of industry watchdogs, who called his emphasis on safety a refreshing change from previous agency chiefs who were close to the nuclear industry or who came from it.
But scientists, fellow commissioners and many rank-and-file staffers said Jaczko had created a chilled working environment at the NRC, which oversees safety at the nation's 104 commercial nuclear reactors.
The Nuclear Energy Institute, an industry group, called Macfarlane "an active contributor to policy debates in the nuclear energy field for many years" and urged the Senate to confirm her nomination as soon as possible.
"It would not serve the public interest to have her nomination linger," the group said. "We urge the Senate to confirm both Commissioner Svinicki and Professor Macfarlane expeditiously."
Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., chairwoman of the Senate Environment Committee, said Macfarlane's background and experience demonstrate a strong commitment to safety — a commitment she called especially important in the wake of the nuclear disaster at Japan's Fukushima Dai-ichi plant.
Boxer said she will schedule a joint hearing on the two NRC nominees in June.
Per Peterson, a professor of nuclear engineering at the University of California, served with Macfarlane on the nuclear waste commission, which was appointed by the Obama administration to make recommendations on how the nation should store and dispose of more than 71,000 tons of radioactive waste at dozens of sites across the country.
"I think she will be effective in leadership" of the NRC, "mainly because she listens," Peterson said of Macfarlane.
In a 2009 interview with Technology Review, Macfarlane acknowledged that most of the objections to the never-completed Yucca Mountain site were political, but added: "The technical objections are serious and real."
The area near Yucca Mountain is seismically and volcanically active, she said, adding that spent nuclear fuel could be stored safely at nuclear plants for decades.
The presidential panel recommended that the government start looking immediately for an alternative to Yucca Mountain. The report also recommended that responsibility for managing nuclear waste be transferred to a new organization, independent of the Energy Department.

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Britain Charts Way to Wider Nuclear Investment

By STEPHEN CASTLE    --   Published: May 22, 2012 

LONDON — Britain announced plans Tuesday to finance a new generation of nuclear power plants and renewable energy facilities in a move that illustrates divergent energy policies within the European Union as it grapples with the challenge of reconciling economic and environmental objectives.  

While Germany intends to phase out nuclear power and France’s new president, François Hollande, aims to reduce his country’s reliance on it, the British government appears to be moving in the opposite direction with its proposals, aimed at luring investment of £110 billion, or $175 billion, to build new reactors and renewable energy plants.

The 27-member European Union sets climate change targets and co-ordinates efforts to reduce energy dependency, but decisions on energy sources remain with national governments.

Britain’s proposals appear to be drafted to sidestep E.U. restrictions on state aid that might prevent direct subsidies for the construction of new nuclear power plants. Instead the plans, announced in draft legislation by the Department of Energy and Climate Change, would guarantee prices for low-carbon electricity and pay producers for backup supplies when renewable sources like wind power fail to meet demand.

Britain hopes that this guaranteed price, to be paid by businesses and consumers, will secure the financial commitment from energy utilities to construct nuclear reactors and clean-power projects needed to meet European targets and reduce Britain’s reliance on natural gas plants.

Recent developments suggest that could be a tough battle. In March, Britain’s nuclear program suffered a serious setback when two German companies, RWE and E.On, announced that they would not proceed with a £15 billion joint venture in Gloucester. The energy giants balked at the huge capital costs involved, blaming the economic crisis and arguing that the German government’s plan to phase out nuclear power had put additional pressure on their balance sheets.

According to British news reports, Centrica has threatened to pull out of a project to build a new nuclear power plant at Hinkley Point in Somerset in a joint venture with EDF Energy, the British subsidiary of the French giant EDF.

To add to the difficulties, the main architect of Britain’s energy policy, Chris Huhne, quit the government in February to fight charges that he perverted the course of justice over a speeding offense in 2003.

His successor, Edward Davey, said Tuesday that new plans were in the national interest and would support as many as 250,000 jobs.

“By reforming the market, we can ensure security of supply for the long-term, reduce the volatility of energy bills by reducing our reliance on imported gas and oil, and meet our climate change goals by largely decarbonizing the power sector during the 2030s,” Mr. Davey said in a statement.

That formulation hinted at a less ambitious timetable for reducing carbon emissions than that proposed by the British government’s independent advisory body, the Committee on Climate Change.

The proposals have intensified debate over the cost and safety of nuclear power after the Fukushima disaster in Japan and the decisions by Germany and by Switzerland, which is not in the European Union, to phase out nuclear reactors.

During the recent presidential election campaign, Mr. Hollande suggested reducing France’s dependence on nuclear power from around 75 percent to around 50 percent and shutting 24 of France’s 58 reactors by 2025.

Critics attacked Britain’s determination to renew its nuclear capacity. “This proposal has distorted policy in order to try to disguise the massive subsidies nuclear will need, but they remain so huge that the policy will fail anyway,” said Tom Burke, a former environmental campaigner and visiting professor at Imperial and University Colleges, London,

Industry reaction was far from euphoric. In a statement, Volker Beckers, chief executive of RWE Npower, said the investment required would add up to around £8,000 for every household in Britain.

“For Britain to remain an attractive market for investors, energy policy must be given adequate priority and resource across government,” he said.

“I remain concerned by the amount of change being implemented in the energy sector and the time it is taking,” Mr. Beckers added. “I applaud government’s appetite for reform, but pulling so many levers at once in such a complex area risks losing sight of your original objectives. What the energy sector needs now is simplicity and clarity.”

Nuclear power stations currently produce around a third of the electricity and 15 percent of the energy consumed in the European Union, according to the bloc’s executive, the European Commission.

In Britain, 16 reactors in nine nuclear power stations provided around 16 percent of electricity in 2010. But the government says that all but one of the existing nuclear power stations will have to be shut by 2023.

Within the European Union, there are 147 nuclear power reactors, according to unofficial data collated by European officials. A new unit is under construction in Finland and France, and two each in Romania and Slovakia. A further seven have been approved by the national authorities, with five or six planned but not yet approved.

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Japan Urges Industry to Cut Energy Use 15%

[Commentary:  Japan's poorly thought and snap response to close down all it's nuclear power plants will result in increased energy prices, a lower standard of living, loss of economic production, and some black outs for citizens.  One of the quickest way to hurt an economy and a standard of living is to raise energy prices.]

The Japanese government is pushing its industrial sector and citizens in certain parts of the country to reduce the amount of energy they use, in an attempt to avoid summer blackouts.
The country is facing a shortage of electric power after shutting down all 50 of its nuclear power plants in the wake of the disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi reactor (pictured) last year, the BBC reports.
Public skepticism about the safety of nuclear power led to the shutdown. The final operational reactor went offline for routine maintenance two weeks ago. None have been turned back on yet, the BBC reports.
As a result, businesses and citizens in the heavily industrialized western area of Japan served by Kansai Electric Power are being asked – but not mandated – to try and cut their energy use by 15 percent, the BBC reports. According to The Wall Street Journal, consumers in other areas of Japan are being asked to try and cut their energy use by 5 to 10 percent in order to feed power to Japan’s west. The reductions are planned from July to September.
Rail stations are dimming passageway lights, according to the BBC. Electronics giant Panasonic plans to set its air conditioning to 82 degrees Fahrenheit. Rival Sharp is planning on using less lighting and letting staff dress more casually to limit heating and cooling use, reports Reuters.
This is not the first time businesses have turned to energy saving techniques as  a result of the Fukishima crisis. In March 2011, in the direct aftermath of the tsunami, Tokyo-based tire and rubber company Bridgestone asked employees at its office buildings and technical center to minimize their use of elevators, share office equipment and turn out lights wherever practical. The firm also shut off billboards, minimized the use of IT systems and closed its corporate museum.
Last June the Japanese government launched a “Super Cool Biz” campaign, pushing workers to wear Hawaiian shirts, T-shirts and sandals to save electricity. Then in November, it asked workers to pile on the sweaters.
The original crisis caused rolling blackouts across Japan. An aftershock that hit in northern Japan just weeks after the initial blast left nearly a million people without power and stopped production at several major companies.


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Great Britian: Energy bill expected to favour nuclear and gas over renewables

The energy bill is likely to favour fossil-fuel sources like gas, for which power stations can be built quickly and cheaply. Photograph: Chris Ratcliffe/Getty Images

 

A dash for gas, a major fillip for nuclear power and blows to renewable energy – these are widely expected to be the contents of the government's much-anticipated draft energy bill, the main contents of which will be outlined by ministers in the afternoon.
The nuclear industry is expected to be one of the big winners, with a set of policies designed to favour low-carbon power – which will, controversially, include atomic energy as well as renewable sources such as wind and solar.
But renewable companies are concerned that they will lose out, because the current system of subsidies will be replaced with a complex new system of support that could favour big companies over their smaller rivals.
This new system – known as contracts for difference – would allow companies to sign long-term contracts to supply electricity. But the prices on such contracts could be higher or lower than the price of electricity in the wholesale market – the attraction to companies is supposed to be that the long-term nature of the contracts gives them the stability and certainty they need to invest.
However, several renewables companies told the Guardian they thought the contracts would push smaller suppliers out of the market. Dale Vince, founder of Ecotricity, called for an exemption for small suppliers in order to encourage competition in the market.
"This is a complex subsidy mechanism designed to artificially raise the price of electricity and make it more attractive for big companies to build new nuclear plants, but as a result no suppliers will be able to accurately predict the cost or volume of electricity that must be budgeted for at the start of each year," he said.
"The level of risk in getting that prediction wrong will be a big problem for the big six energy companies, so imagine how much the risk is magnified for small energy suppliers. This risk does not exist under the current support mechanism for renewables."
The Department of Energy and Climate Change said its research showed the contracts for difference would provide good value for money for consumers.
Gas will also be a major focus of the new policy. It is seen as a relatively easy option to "keep the lights on" as many of the UK's ageing coal-fired power stations and nuclear reactors are due to be taken out of service by 2020. Renewable energy, such as offshore wind, is not being built fast enough to close the potential "energy gap" between supply and demand.
Gas-fired power stations, by contrast, can be built very quickly – within less than two years on average – and relatively cheaply, so if there is a threat of energy shortages they can be a stopgap, and they produce less carbon than coal.
A new "dash for gas", however, would be fatal to the hopes of building a low-carbon economy in the UK, according to green campaigners, and could leave consumers hooked on an increasingly expensive fossil fuel, with the soaring price rises that could entail. The UK's own supplies of natural gas in the North Sea are being rapidly depleted, making consumers heavily dependent on imports and the price volatility that brings. As any new gas-fired power stations would be expected to carry on operating – and producing CO2 – for at least 25 years, this would also make the UK's climate change targets in the 2020s increasingly hard to meet.
John Sauven, the executive director of Greenpeace UK, said: "This is a looming energy omnishambles. The energy bill could be a huge opportunity to get energy bills and carbon emissions under control, and to bring security to our power supplies. But ministers seem hell-bent on scuppering all of these aims by encouraging a big increase in our dependence on burning expensive gas to generate electricity.
"This would increase the burden on families and businesses, and see money from bills going to countries like Qatar and Norway instead of back into the British economy."
Much of the content of the new policy has already been discussed, but there could still be surprises in the form of some of the details, which have still to be set out, and in the timing. Two years into the coalition, the government has come under fire for failing to tackle energy issues sooner – and any further delays will be greeted with dismay by sections of the industry and investors who have repeatedly said that policy certainty is essential if the hundreds of billions in investment needed to revamp the UK's creaking energy infrastructure are to be flow.
Renewable energy companies believe there is still time for the government to show them more support in its energy plans. Gaynor Hartnell, chief executive of the Renewable Energy Association, said: "The government needs to enrich its understanding of the benefits of renewable energy investment. There is frustration that government leadership is missing in practice … Several countries, from America to Japan to Germany, have realised that taking the long-term view and investing in renewables is a significant step on the route out of economic malaise."
Ed Davey, the secretary of state for energy and climate change, said the reforms were needed in order to bring forward the estimated £110bn that will be needed for new low-carbon energy capacity, and said they could generate as many as 250,000 new jobs. He said: "Leaving the electricity market as it is would not be in the national interest. If we don't secure investment in our energy infrastructure, we could see the lights going out, consumers hit by spiralling energy prices and dangerous climate change. These reforms will ensure we can keep the lights on, bills down and the air clean."
Davey said the reforms would reduce the UK's vulnerability to rising global energy prices: "By reforming the market, we can ensure security of supply for the long term, reduce the volatility of energy bills by reducing our reliance on imported gas and oil, and meet our climate change goals by largely decarbonising the power sector during the 2030s."

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Lower French Nuclear Output: Europe Power-Forwards firm with higher oil prices

    * French nuclear power capacity lower than expected
    * EDF's 900-MW Gravelines 4 reactor in unplanned outage

    FRANKFURT/PARIS, May 22 (Reuters) - European power forwards
edged higher on Tuesday on the back of a slight rise in oil
prices while lower-than-expected nuclear power capacity pushed
French spot prices slightly higher.     
    Spot prices in Germany eased due to increasing wind speeds
and higher temperatures.  
    The curve was hovering above last week's 18-month lows but
in low volume, reflecting operators' indecision as they weighed
different fuels scenarios, traders said. 
    "There is no strong push in either direction," one said. 
    Germany's Cal '13 baseload, the benchmark position for power
delivery next year, nudged up 10 cents to 48.85 euros a megawatt
hour (MWh). 
    The French contract rose 10 cents to 49.6 euros
per MWh. 
    Coal and gas, important power inputs, were weaker, while EU
carbon prices ticked higher. 
    Oil rose slightly to $109 per barrel, underperforming other
demand sensitive assets, as signs of a deal on Iran's nuclear
programme eased fears of oil supply disruptions.  
    German spot power prices were lower with Wednesday delivery
baseload shedding 10 cents on the day to 42.50 euros. 
    France's day-ahead contract edged 50 cents higher to 43.75
euros, as nuclear power capacity was lower than expected
this week. 
    EDF's 900-megawatt (MW) Gravelines 4 nuclear
reactor stopped for an unplanned outage on Tuesday, France's
power grid RTE said, without providing a reason or restart date. 
    Wind power was seen at 10 GW of capacity use for the next
two days, equivalent to a third of the installed total. 
    Observers of German energy industry policy will likely focus
on the upcoming meeting on Wednesday between heads of federal
states and Chancellor Angela Merkel on urgent energy strategy
issues.  
     The Berlin meeting is aimed at starting to clear up
financial, legal and technical uncertainties that have
undermined progress on a coherent plan, which Merkel now
indicates she will press for.

 

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Pilgrim nuclear plant shut down after condenser problem

By Colin A. Young, Globe Correspondent

Power production at the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Plymouth was halted this afternoon when a condenser at the station lost vacuum pressure during a cleaning, forcing operators to shut down the entire plant, officials said.
Operators shut down the plant, which was operating at about 30 percent power at the time, according to Neil Sheehan, a spokesman for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Plant operators initiated a manual “scram,” which “involves the control room operators inserting all of the control rods into the reactor core to halt the fissioning process,” according to Sheehan.
The condenser uses water from the bay to cool and convert into water the steam that was produced in the reactor and then used to spin the turbine to generate electricity, Sheehan said. The condenser operates in a vacuum to maximize efficiency, he said.
NRC inspectors at the plant “did not identify any safety concerns or performance issues,” Sheehan said. “They will follow the company’s efforts to troubleshoot the cause of the loss of condenser vacuum and any corrective actions.”
Rob Williams, a spokesman for Entergy Corp., the Louisiana-based company that has run the plant since 1999, said that the incident, which happened at 1:11 p.m., took the station off the power grid. The plant will remain shut down until investigators determine what caused the problem, Williams said.
“The technicians are now investigating the cause of that reduced condenser performance,” he said. “As we do with every shutdown, there will be a comprehensive investigation to look into what caused the condenser performance issue.”
Multiple failures by the control room staff at the station last spring sparked the power plant’s first emergency shutdown in years, according to a report released in September by the NRC, which issued a finding that the problems were likely serious enough to warrant a rigorous year-long review of the plant’s safety procedures.


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UPDATE 1-UK talks to nuclear firms about fixed power price

* EDF Energy, Centrica in talks with govt about nuclear contract
* Low-carbon power to compete without intervention in late 2020s
* Govt would not oppose regulator decision to run nuclear longer
* Govt considering option of multiple contract counterparties

By Karolin Schaps


LONDON, May 22 (Reuters) - The UK government has started talks with two nuclear operators about fixing a price for power generated from their proposed new nuclear plant in what is the first indication that industry is preparing for the government's power market reform.
The reform, a draft of which was introduced to Parliament on Tuesday in an important legislative step, proposes to guarantee producers of low-carbon electricity, including nuclear power, a minimum price for sold electricity in a bid to encourage investment in forms of energy that do not emit carbon.
Utilities EDF Energy and Centrica plan to build the country's next new nuclear power plant at Hinkley Point in Somerset and locking in a future electricity price would guarantee the operators long-term returns on a project which costs several billions of pounds to build.
"We are starting negotiations with EDF and Centrica over Hinkley Point C, they have only just started," Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change Edward Davey told journalists on Tuesday.
The first so-called contracts-for-difference guaranteeing the minimum price will start in 2014, but the ultimate aim is for low-carbon technologies to cost-effectively compete in the market without government intervention by the late 2020s.
The government's incentive plan for new plants was thrown into doubt in March, when E.ON and RWE decided to put their UK nuclear new build joint venture Horizon up for sale.
Britain's electricity market reform will push through new rules to help reduce carbon emissions, ensure demand is met by supply and shelter consumers from extortionate bills.
With around 200 billion pounds of investments needed to decarbonise Britain's energy market and global energy prices estimated to rise, energy bills are certain to increase in future, but the government says its power reform could limit household power bill increases to 100 pounds by 2030, compared with 200 pounds if no changes were made.
POWER SUPPLY SQUEEZE Britain also faces a power supply squeeze by the middle of this decade as around 15 percent of ageing and polluting capacity will shut down and further station closures, including nuclear plants, will increase the supply gap by the early 2020s unless the market offers incentives to build new plants.
Energy Minister Charles Hendry said on Tuesday the government would not oppose a nuclear regulator decision should it rule UK nuclear power plants were safe to run for longer.
The government's price guarantee to low-carbon generators was proposed to be backed up by one central counterparty, but it said on Tuesday it was considering installing several counterparties after requests from industry stakeholders.
On top of guaranteeing low-carbon power generators a price, a minimum cost of carbon will be introduced in April 2013 at 16 pounds per tonne of CO2 to further discourage carbon emissions.
The reform also proposes a mechanism to pay holders of backup capacity, mainly aimed at gas-fired power plants, who can switch on or off power plants at short notice to balance out intermittent renewable energy plants such as wind farms.
An Emissions Performance Standard (EPS) will also set a maximum level of carbon emissions from fossil fuel power plants.
Most electricity market stakeholders welcomed the government's reform, but some expressed concern about the timing and complexity to push through necessary changes.
"I applaud government's appetite for reform, but pulling so many levers at once in such a complex area risks losing sight of your original objectives," said Volker Beckers, CEO of RWE npower, the UK subsidiary of German utility RWE.
Other industry analysts said investors will need much more detail on the technicalities of the reform proposals to make final investment decisions on new power generation capacity.
"The critical challenge over the next 12 months is for the debate on market reform to converge on agreed and workable solutions," said Bill Easton, director of utilities at consultancy Ernst & Young.

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