http://www.nuclearpowerdaily.com/index.html Mon, 20 MAY 2013 12:07:49 AEST Mon, 20 MAY 2013 12:07:49 AEST en-us Tense engineers have their eyes peeled on complex colour-coded diagrams on a wall-sized screen that makes their control room look like the inside of a spaceship. They work with a power system that would have seemed equally futuristic not so long ago. It is also prone to solar turbulence and other unexpected flare-ups. The technicians work at a monitoring centre of the electricity company]]> Mon, 20 MAY 2013 12:07:49 AEST Electrabel, part of the giant French group GDF-Suez, said Friday it will restart two nuclear reactors closed down in 2012 after micro-cracks were found in them, sparking fears about their safety in the aftermath of Japan's Fukushima disaster. Belgium's nuclear safety authority, AFCN, "authorises the restarting of the Doel 3 and Tihange 2 reactors," Electrabel said in a statement. "Electr]]> Mon, 20 MAY 2013 12:07:49 AEST Germany's environment minister urged lawmakers Friday to back a "historic breakthrough" and relaunch the search for a nuclear waste dump site, a topic that has sparked controversy for three decades. Peter Altmaier told a parliamentary debate that the new search would look at a "blank map" as it scours Germany for "the most suitable final repository regarding the safety of people and nature".]]> Mon, 20 MAY 2013 12:07:49 AEST Thousands of Taiwanese marched through the capital Taipei Sunday urging the government to halt construction of a nearly completed nuclear power plant, citing the Japanese atomic crisis. The demonstrators chanted slogans like "No Nuke for Our Children" during the march which extended for miles as they evoked memories of the March 2011 Fukushima crisis sparked by an earthquake and tsunami. ]]> Mon, 20 MAY 2013 12:07:49 AEST Japan's atomic regulator Wednesday ordered a halt to plans to restart an experimental reactor because of safety concerns, as a strong anti-nuclear mood grips the nation. Local media said the move by the Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) would make it impossible for the Monju Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor to begin working again this fiscal year. The NRA has been examining Monju since it]]> Mon, 20 MAY 2013 12:07:49 AEST India is hoping Nawaz Sharif's return to power in Pakistan will herald an upturn in ties between the nuclear rivals as long as he can keep the generals who ousted him last time at bay, analysts say. Sharif's last stint in power from 1997-99 saw India and Pakistan clash in a limited conflict known as the Kargil war as well as Islamabad declaring itself a nuclear power, weeks after New Delhi s]]> Mon, 20 MAY 2013 12:07:49 AEST Taiwan authorities attempted Tuesday to ease fears of a Japanese-style crisis at the island's nearly completed newest nuclear power plant, ahead of a mass protest this weekend. The state Taiwan Power Company (Taipower) faces an uphill battle to persuade the public its nuclear facilities are safe after a 9.0-magnitude earthquake and tsunami struck Japan in 2011, crippling a nuclear power pla]]> Mon, 20 MAY 2013 12:07:49 AEST Czech electricity group CEZ, 70-percent owned by the state, reported on Tuesday a 24.0-percent rise in first-quarter net profit to 17.9 billion koruna (696 million euros, $913 million). This was the second-highest profit in the company's history, the firm said in a statement. Sales by the business, Ceske Energeticke Zavody, fell by 1.0 percent from the comparable figure 12 months earlier]]> Mon, 20 MAY 2013 12:07:49 AEST India's Supreme Court has given the green light for the commissioning of the controversial Kundankulam Nuclear Power Plant. Kundankulam's reactors, built by state-owned Nuclear Power Corp. of India in conjunction with Russia's Atomexport, are to be the first foreign-designed reactors to operate in the country since the 1970s. Environmentalists, anti-nuclear campaigners and local ]]> Mon, 20 MAY 2013 12:07:49 AEST India's Supreme Court gave the green light on Monday to the commissioning of the nation's largest nuclear power plant in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, despite widespread protests. "The plant has been set up for people's welfare," said the ruling on the Kudankulam plant. "Necessary clearances have been taken by the government, and development of the nuclear power plant is important fo]]> Mon, 20 MAY 2013 12:07:49 AEST On Tuesday, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission told judges overseeing the licensing case for two proposed South Texas Project reactors that the applicant (NINA) is subject to foreign ownership control or domination requirements and does not meet the provisions of the Atomic Energy Act in this regard. This will help licensing opponents in the hearing that is anticipated this fall. "This NRC ]]> Mon, 20 MAY 2013 12:07:49 AEST South Korea on Friday jailed six nuclear power engineers and suppliers linked to a major corruption scandal that stoked public concern over safety standards. Two engineers with state-run Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power (KHNP) were handed prison terms ranging from 14 months to two years for taking bribes from suppliers who used forged safety certificates. Four suppliers were given jail sent]]> Mon, 20 MAY 2013 12:07:49 AEST Japan and Turkey on Friday signed a long-awaited deal to build a sprawling nuclear power plant on Turkey's Black Sea coast, a milestone for the Japanese nuclear industry as it recovers from the 2011 Fukushima disaster. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan hailed the $22 billion contract as a "very important step" that would transform bilateral relations with Japan into a "strategic pa]]> Mon, 20 MAY 2013 12:07:49 AEST A Japanese-French consortium has won a $22 billion dollar contract to build a nuclear power plant on Turkey's Black Sea coast, a senior energy ministry official said on Thursday. "An inter-governmental agreement is expected to be signed between the prime ministers of both countries (Turkey and Japan) on Friday," the official told AFP on condition of anonymity. The consortium will include]]> Mon, 20 MAY 2013 12:07:49 AEST Japan and the United Arab Emirates signed on Thursday a nuclear cooperation agreement during a visit by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe who stressed Tokyo's cooperation with its Middle East partners. Abe is on a regional tour he began in Saudi Arabia, in a push to sell Japanese nuclear technologies. The cooperation agreement over a peaceful use of nuclear energy was signed in Dubai, in the pre]]> Mon, 20 MAY 2013 12:07:49 AEST