EU

Extract energy from used nuclear fuel, says environmental group

04 April 2023

If existing inventories of used nuclear fuel were recycled and repurposed as fuel for advanced fast reactors, it could generate zero-carbon electricity for Europe for up to 1000 years, according to international environmental campaign group RePlanet.

Report author Mark Lynas and RePlanet's Campaigns Coordinator Joel Scott-Halkes hug a canister of nuclear used fuel at the UK's Sizewell nuclear power plant (Image: RePlanet)

In its new report - What a waste: How fast-fission power can provide clean energy from nuclear waste - RePlanet says Europe's nuclear power reactors "have a long history of safe use, and have provided prodigious quantities of clean electricity for decades". However, it notes that they use less than 1% of the actual energy potential in the natural uranium used to make their fuel and irradiated fuel assemblies removed from reactors are considered 'nuclear waste'.

"While this nuclear 'waste' is not a serious environmental or health threat - it occupies trivial volumes compared to waste produced by other industries, and does not harm anyone if properly shielded and safeguarded - it does provide a political challenge, and is among the most oft-cited reasons for continued opposition to carbon-free nuclear power," the report says.

RePlanet says using this used fuel in a new generation of fast-neutron reactors would "eliminate it as a 'waste' concern via a carbon-free waste-to-energy process". It notes that most of the remaining leftover fission products would return to a level of radioactivity comparable to the original uranium ore within 200-300 years. "This means that current deep geological disposal strategies can be simplified and scaled back," it suggests.

The report found that using a calculation based mainly on current inventories of uranium, "there is sufficient energy in nuclear 'waste' to run Europe at current electrical power consumption" for between 600 and 1000 years.

It adds: "If unconventional uranium and thorium resources are considered in the global picture, nuclear fuel is essentially limitless: sufficient to supply a growing human civilisation with carbon-free energy for tens of thousands of years, and likely far longer".

The report notes that while the economics of fast reactors are currently unproven, if resources currently intended for deep geological disposal of used fuel were diverted instead into a fast reactor programme that would enable the re-use of that fuel, "this would turn a burden into a useful part of a legitimate circular economic activity".

Launching the report, RePlanet campaigners call on green parties of Europe to end their "dangerous and unscientific" opposition to nuclear energy. This, it says, is particularly important given the recent release of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Synthesis Report, which shows the world is rapidly running out of time to cut carbon emissions sufficiently to meet the Paris goal of 1.5°C. "RePlanet campaigners state that opposition to nuclear is tantamount to climate delayerism from fossil fuel corporations because it will increase carbon emissions".

"Current political narratives treat spent nuclear fuel like it is a waste product that needs to be buried underground, leaving a toxic legacy for future generations," said Mark Lynas, climate author and RePlanet co-founder. "Anti-nuclear campaigners never tire of repeating this mantra in their campaign to shut down nuclear plants irrespective of our climate emergency. However, we show in this RePlanet report that nuclear waste simply needs to be recycled efficiently in order to generate centuries of clean power for Europe and the UK. This material is not waste, it is fuel for the future."

"The IPCC has again made it extremely clear that we just have to get off fossil fuels, and that opposing clean energy technologies like nuclear puts the world on the path to irreversible climate breakdown," said RePlanet Secretary General Karolina Lisslö Gylfe.

RePlanet describes itself as "a network of grassroots charitable organisations driven by science-based solutions to climate change, biodiversity collapse and the need to eliminate poverty".

Researched and written by World Nuclear News

USA

Two more Natrium units for coal-to-nuclear switching

05 April 2023

US utility PacifiCorp has increased its ambition for using Natrium advanced reactors in the 2030s, adding two further units to its plans in addition to the demonstration unit already slated for a retiring coal power plant in Kemmerer, Wyoming.

To be repowered: Kemmerer will be the first PacifiCorp coal plant to switch to nuclear energy (Image: PacifiCorp)

While the Kemmerer project's operation has been pushed back by two years to 2030 due to the unavailability of non-Russian origin high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) fuel, PacifiCorp's plan counts it as producing 500 MWe from that date, "with an additional 1000 MWe of advanced nuclear resources over the long term." Natrium reactors store heat in molten salt to boost their power from 345 MWe to 500 MWe for as long as 5.5 hours to serve peak demand or fill in for times of lower renewable generation.

TerraPower President and CEO Chris Levesque said he was "pleased" with the update. The company noted that the additional units were earmarked for Utah, but "both companies will engage with local communities before any final sites are selected."

Neither Utah nor Wyoming currently have nuclear power plants, although the University of Utah has operated a small 100 kW TRIGA research reactor on the edge of Salt Lake City since 1975 and Wyoming has a number of uranium mines.

PacifiCorp's plan includes a series of major investments which it said should result in a 70% reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from 2005 levels by 2030 and an 87% reduction by 2035.

The plan includes over 9 GWe of new wind power, over 8 GWe of storage and 7.8 GWe of new solar in addition to the 500 MWe from Kemmerer and the further 1000 MWe of nuclear promised for the long term. It also includes over 900 MWe of load control, almost 5 GW of efficiency savings and over 1200 MWe of unspecified "non-emitting peaking resources". All this will be facilitated by 2500 miles (4023 kilometres) of new transmission lines spanning the western states of Washington, Idaho, Colorado, Oregon, Wyoming and Utah which the company calls the Energy Gateway. The scope for nuclear could increase further, given that PacifiCorp and TerraPower have studied the deployment of as many as five Natrium units.

PacifiCorp's plan states: "With recent federal legislation and studies on the opportunities of a coal-to-nuclear energy transition, TerraPower and PacifiCorp remain committed to bringing the Natrium technology to market for the benefit of grid reliability and stability for energy-producing communities in Wyoming and Utah."

Grid connection for Vogtle unit 3

03 April 2023

Vogtle unit 3 began supplying its first electricity to the grid on 1 April, Georgia Power announced. The AP1000 reactor - the first new reactor to start up in the USA since 2016 - is scheduled to enter commercial operation by mid-year.

Vogtle unit 3 (Image: Georgia Power)

"The generator at Vogtle unit 3 has generated electricity for the first time, and the unit has successfully synchronised and connected to the electric grid," the company said.

Operators will now take the unit through a gradual power increase until it reaches its full power output. Tests to ensure all systems are operating together and to validate operating procedures will be carried out throughout the start-up process before the unit is declared to be in commercial operation.

Georgia Power currently projects an in-service date for Vogtle 3 in May or June.

"What an incredibly inspiring time to join Georgia Power as we celebrate this milestone that marks the first day of generating clean, reliable power at this new nuclear unit, which will serve our customers over the next 60 to 80 years," said Kim Greene, chairman, president and CEO of Georgia Power. "I consider myself very fortunate to have worked onsite at Vogtle 1 and 2 early in my career as an engineer, learning so much that I have carried with me over the years while also gaining an appreciation of the value of nuclear energy as a critical, long-term investment for our state. As we approach commercial operation for unit 3, I know that every professional who has been involved in this project or worked at Plant Vogtle is proud of the role they have played in helping build a clean energy future for Georgia."

Construction of the two Westinghouse AP1000s began at Vogtle in 2013, with work starting on unit 3 in March and unit 4 in November of that year. Southern Nuclear and Georgia Power, both subsidiaries of Southern Company, took over management of the construction project in 2017 following Westinghouse's Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The units are co-owned by Georgia Power, Oglethorpe Power, MEAG Power and Dalton Utilities, and will be operated by Southern Nuclear.

Unit 3 achieved first criticality - a sustained chain reaction - on 6 March.

Hot functional testing, which verifies the successful operation of reactor components and systems, and confirms the reactor is ready for fuel load, began at Vogtle unit 4 last month. The reactor is projected to enter service in late fourth quarter 2023 or first quarter 2024.

"The new Vogtle units are an essential part of Georgia Power's commitment to delivering clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy to its 2.7 million customers," the company said. "Once operating, the two new units, which will be clean energy sources that produce zero emissions, are expected to power more than 500,000 homes and businesses".

Partnership unveils plan for helium test facility

03 April 2023

X-Energy Reactor Company, LLC and Kinectrics have announced a partnership to design, construct and operate a commercial-scale facility to test and verify the performance of critical structures, systems, and components of X-energy’s Xe-100 advanced small modular reactor (SMR) in helium-based high-temperature and high-pressure environments.

(Image: X-energy)

The facility will be one of the first commercial-scale helium test facilities (HTF) in North America.

The companies expect to announce the HTF site this summer and complete its detailed design in 2023, with the goal of having an operational facility in 2025. Data collected from testing in the HTF will be used to refine Xe-100 start-up and commissioning procedures and to gain critical operating experience to inform future reactor maintenance, operations, and staff training.

"The Helium Test Facility is an integral part of testing our systems and components in expected operating conditions and verifying their safety, operability, and reliability," X-energy CEO Clay Sell said. It will also drive additional potential optimisations of X-energy's reactors, he added.

The Xe-100 - a high-temperature gas-cooled reactor - will use circulating helium gas to transfer heat from the reactor core through a heat exchanger to generate high-temperature steam that can be used to generate electricity or supply heat for industrial processes. The HTF will test Xe-100 components and instruments under operating conditions and without the presence of any nuclear materials. These tests will enable design verification and give Kinectrics and X-energy performance data on key reactor systems, X-energy said.

Kinectrics CEO David Harris said the testing provided by the HTF will support "timely commercialisation" of the Xe-100. "This project is part of a long-term partnership between X-energy and Kinectrics. We expect the Xe-100 will produce electricity and high temperature process steam in a safe and reliable manner, which enables our clean energy future," he said.

X-energy is receiving support from the US Department of Energy, under the Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program, to deliver a four-module version Xe-100 demonstration plant and a commercial TRISO fuel fabrication facility. The company has recently agreed to work with materials science company Dow to develop a four-unit Xe-100 facility at one of Dow's US Gulf Coast sites. This will be supported by testing and design validation at the HTF, X-energy said. Energy Northwest has also named the Xe-100 as its preferred technology for the prospective deployment of an SMR in Washington state by the end of the decade.

Researched and written by World Nuclear News

Global wheat supplies under threat from dry Canadian fields

Jen Skerritt, Bloomberg New

A dry spell is parching Canadian farmland when growers most need moisture to plant the wheat and canola crops that help feed the world.

Parts of the Canadian Prairies have experienced the second-driest start to a year in 45 years, said David Streit, senior meteorologist at Commodity Weather Group. Swaths of key spring wheat regions including Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba have received less than 60 per cent of average precipitation since Sept. 1, according to Canada’s agriculture ministry.

 “It becomes a bit of an art to try and get those seeds at the right depth into the soil because you need to be seeding into moisture to get them to germinate,” said Bill Prybylski, a farmer and vice president at Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan. “If there isn’t good moisture, those tiny plants are quite susceptible to adverse conditions.”

Canada is the world’s top canola grower and a major wheat exporter. Drought fears in Canada come amid continued uncertainty about wheat exports from the Black Sea region and as dry conditions in parts of the U.S. threaten to cut output.

Three Canadian crypto companies to form regulated trading platform

Holly McKenzie-Sutter, BNN Bloomberg

Three Canadian crypto companies are combining to create the country’s largest regulated crypto asset trading platform, and executives said the merger will give them a new edge for business success in an industry that’s been roiled by regulatory concerns.

Monday’s announcement from WonderFi, Coinsquare and CoinSmart confirmed BNN Bloomberg reporting from earlier this year about the merger talks.

The news comes after the crypto world was rocked by the collapse of Bahamas-based FTX Trading Ltd. last fall and financial crimes charges against its founder in the U.S. The saga sparked heightened public discussion about regulation of the relatively new industry.

Dean Skurka, president and interim CEO of WonderFi, told BNN Bloomberg on Monday that the merger offers a “path to profitability” amid a heightened regulatory environment.

“As regulatory costs increase I think it naturally leads to consolidation and acquisition opportunities like we've seen today,” Skurka said in a television interview.

“Certainly, with a combined company now we believe the scale will address a lot of those concerns, and there will be a clear path to profitability.”

A news release from WonderFi said the three companies have more than 1.65 million registered Canadian users and over $600 million in combined assets under custody.

WonderFi will issue about 269,727,080 common shares to Coinsquare’s shareholders and 119,181,733 common shares to CoinSmart’s shareholders as part of the transaction.

Of the combined company, WonderFi shareholders will own 38 per cent, Coinsquare shareholders will own 43 per cent and CoinSmart shareholders will own 19 per cent on a partially diluted basis.

Last October, Coinsquare became the first Canadian platform to be registered with the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization (IIROC). The companies said Monday that the regulated trading business would be “consolidated under Coinsquare’s investment dealer registrant” and new SRO member, Coinsquare Capital Markets Ltd.

Coinsquare CEO Martin Piszel said he sees the company’s head start on the regulation process as a competitive asset.

“Regulation is now coming first and it’s a competitive advantage,” Piszel told BNN Bloomberg on Monday.

Justin Hartzman, co-founder and CEO of CoinSmart, said keeping up with changing regulation can be costly and time-consuming, and merging the companies gives customers a “regulated, safe environment” for their money, and ideally an attractive platform that meets their financial needs.

He said he’s also watching long-term to see how the crypto sector benefits from customers who may be more nervous about holding their money at traditional banks, after failures at select mid-sized U.S. banks last month. Hartzman said the regulation-first approach to the trading platform should give customers reassurance.

Piszel estimated that it will take four to six months for the companies to receive the necessary regulatory approvals for the merger.

Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary, a strategic investor in WonderFi, also spoke with BNN Bloomberg on Monday about his views on the crypto consolidation.

O’Leary, who was a spokesman for FTX before the company’s meltdown, said the Canadian crypto merger has set a model for the world in terms of crypto regulation in a new era for the industry.

“If you can't play ball with the regulator, you will not exist,” he said.

“Canada will be the shining example of how it's going to go in every single geography.”

Interest rate cap only 'first step' in tackling predatory lending: Advocates

Holly McKenzie-Sutter, BNN Bloomberg

Marcia Bryan was one of many Canadians who took out a loan from an alternative financial services lender, only to find herself swamped with steep monthly payments and debt that wouldn’t budge.

At first, she borrowed a small amount of $2,700 in 2019, then incrementally more. She made her payments each month but her debt kept ballooning. It took years before she realized the steep interest on her loan was to blame.

“I’m looking at my statement and I’m thinking, ‘This isn’t going anywhere.’ I’m not putting a dent in it really,” she told BNNBloomberg.ca in a phone interview last week. 

Bryan, chairperson for the Cooksville Chapter of social advocacy group ACORN Canada, recently celebrated new proposed limits on consumer interest rates for loans introduced in this year’s federal budget – but she said more clarity is needed on the proposal, and more work must be done to reign in so-called “predatory lending” in Canada.

“We call this a victory, but it’s still not over yet,” she said.

Tabled last Tuesday, the federal Liberals’ 2023 spending plan proposed lowering the criminal rate of interest for consumers to 35 per cent annual percentage rate (APR) from the current 47 per cent APR.

It also proposed adjusting the Criminal Code exemption for payday lenders, which are regulated provincially, to no more than $14 per $100, borrowed, and announced plans to hold consultations on further revisions to alternative and payday lending regulation.

ACORN advocates, including Bryan, had called on the federal government to tackle the practice of “predatory lending,” where businesses offer loans at high interest rates to people who can’t access credit from traditional banks. ACORN had pitched a cap of 30 per cent APR to start.

Bryan said she wants more clarity on whether the new interest rate will apply to all existing customers, and when it will come into effect. She’d also like to see efforts to create more options for customers at mainstream financial institutions, recalling to her own inability to obtain a loan from a major Canadian bank, despite being a longtime customer with good credit.

Alternative lenders have raised concerns about the proposed regulatory changes.

The Canadian Lenders’ Association warned that the lower interest rate cap could have the opposite of its intended effect and make life costlier for low-income Canadians by eliminating their access to non-prime credit. The organization argued that could drive people to take out payday loans at even more expensive interest rates, and urged the government to focus on further regulations for payday lenders.

Jason Mullins, president and CEO of goeasy, told BNN Bloomberg in a television interview that his company already offers rates below the new federal limit. He is not concerned about his business’ ability to adapt to the new rules, but said he worries about the industry and its customers.

“It’s the consumer and the industry that we’re more worried about and unintended consequences for them,” he said.

Doretta Thompson, director of corporate citizenship and financial literacy leader at CPA Canada, said governments are walking a fine line when it comes to regulating alternative lenders because if the businesses can’t make money, people could be driven into a completely unregulated black market to acquire credit.

She said the alternative lenders’ framing of their operations as essential services points to an “important systemic issue” in Canada: that many low-income people aren’t served by the mainstream banking sector.

“The question becomes: how does one develop or offer more fair, reasonable services for those people,” she said in a telephone interview.

She said the federal budget proposal is an “important first step” in tackling predatory lending and shining a light on the practices that trap people in cycles of high-interest loans – noting that more people tend to seek out alternative lenders during economic tough times, such as today’s high-interest rate, high-inflation environment.

There are also other means of offering more mainstream loan options, Thompson said. She referenced a program launched by Canada Post and TD Bank that offered loans based on credit scores before it was paused last fall.

Greater education around financial literacy would also help Canadians make informed decisions for themselves, she added.

“There's a role a really important role for all parts of the financial ecosystem to start thinking about all people in Canada … having access to fair, reasonable credit services,” she said.

Canada Life buying Investment Planning Counsel business from IGM Financial

The Canadian Press

CANADIAN LIFE CO SPLIT CRP-A (LFE:CT)

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As of: 04/05/23 8:08:47 am
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The Canada Life Assurance Co. has signed a deal to acquire wealth management firm Investment Planning Counsel Inc. from IGM Financial Inc. for $575 million.

Canada Life says the IPC business is profitable today and the deal is expected to be modestly accretive after two years.

It estimates that transaction and integration costs of $25 million pre-tax are expected over 12 to 18 months after the deal closes. 

The deal came as IGM announced an agreement to buy a 20.5 per cent stake in Rockefeller Capital Management, a U.S. independent financial services advisory firm, for US$622 million.

IGM is now Rockefeller's second largest shareholder, while Viking Global Investors remains the lead shareholder.

Canada Life parent company Great-West Lifeco Inc. and IGM are both part of the Power Corp. family of companies. 

QUEBEC INC./LIBERAL PARTY OF CANADA:

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 4, 2023.

Bank of Canada rate hikes hitting immigrants and millennials hard

Randy Thanthong-Knight and Erik Hertzberg, Bloomberg News

Millennials and immigrants are bearing the brunt of the Bank of Canada’s aggressive interest-rate hikes. But baby boomers who own their homes outright aren’t likely to be feeling the pinch.

A generational wealth gap is at the root of the contrasting experiences of these cohorts. The central bank acknowledges the uneven impact of its rate moves and is studying how different segments of the population are faring as it pauses its hiking cycle.

Younger generations and recent arrivals are more likely to be carrying heavy debt loads or have taken out large adjustable-rate mortgages to finance expensive homes during the COVID-19 real estate boom. Mohita Jajodia, 34, is among those now being squeezed, looking to cut expenses and delay major purchases.

Conversely, older generations remain mostly unscathed. Many have already paid off their mortgages — the biggest burden for Canadian households, which are the most indebted among the Group of Seven.

Governor Tiff Macklem is counting on a 425-basis-point jolt to interest rates, delivered in less than a year, to slow consumption and rein in soaring inflation. But differences in the impact of the hikes between the two camps are creating uncertainty around how and when the economy will cool.

Floating-rate mortgage holders and those in historically disadvantaged groups — Indigenous and racialized Canadians, as well as people with disabilities — are more likely to be hit harder by higher rates, a central bank survey released Monday showed. Less wealthy individuals also took a greater hit to their net worth as borrowing costs surged, according to the latest income distribution data from Statistics Canada.

Macklem’s own words before the hiking cycle began, meanwhile, also influenced the behavior of borrowers like Jajodia. She and her husband now see the vast majority of their adjustable-rate mortgage payments going toward interest, lengthening the amortization period for their Toronto-suburb home.

They moved to Canada’s financial capital from Mumbai in September 2020, when house prices started rising rapidly as emergency low interest rates spurred demand amid limited supply. Fearing missing out after - seeing their immigrant friends getting into the housing market during that run-up, they bought their first home in February 2022, spending nearly $1 million on a place an hour away from downtown.

A month later, Macklem and his officials started hiking interest rates, immediately sending house prices into a correction. Now, real estate values in the Halton Hills area that includes their Georgetown townhouse are down 23 per cent from a peak when they bought.

“All of this rush was because we wanted to be able to secure a lower rate. We weren’t anticipating the interest rates to increase by more than 400 basis points. We hadn’t built that into our calculations,” Jajodia said in an interview, adding that Macklem’s 2020 speech assuring that rates would be “low for a long time” influenced their thinking.

“I definitely regret the decision. There’s really nothing we can do. We’re just waiting for the rates to drop.”

In a stark contrast to Jajodia’s situation, retired Vancouverites Daniel Limawan, 62, and his husband have almost paid off their mortgage and aren’t affected by rate hikes. They’re now spending winter months living part-time in Lisbon after traveling through Asia earlier this year.

Next month, they will own their home outright, joining about 28 per cent of Canadian homeowners and 50 per cent of those in Vancouver who are mortgage-free. The couple, who used to work in the television industry, bought their hilltop house with a downtown view in 1999 for $315,000. Since then, its value is estimated to have jumped 470 per cent to $1.8 million.

“We feel sorry for people who just entered the housing market, especially in Vancouver and Toronto. How dreadful and dramatic it can be if you have to pay significantly more and it’s really out of your control,” Limawan said.

Economists estimate that with Macklem’s last hike in January, which brought the benchmark rate to 4.5 per cent, close to two thirds of variable-rate will have been triggered, meaning more of borrowers’ monthly payments will be shifted to interest from principal.

There’s also a swath of fixed mortgages about to renew at much higher levels. Unlike in the U.S., where households often enjoy the security of fixed terms in popular 30-year loans, many Canadians have to renegotiate their rates every five years.

Higher rates are hurting the nearly 40 per cent Canadians who rent their homes too. The steep deterioration in affordability, which presents a major barrier to home ownership for young adults, is driving up rental costs for families who are competing for scarcer housing as hundreds of thousands of immigrants enter Canada each year.

The Bank of Canada is acutely aware of the problem. In 2020, it setup what it calls the Heterogeneity Laboratory to “better understand the range of household experiences in the Canadian economy.” And officials from Macklem on down regularly concede that their rate hikes are hurtful but necessary.

“We know that the monetary policy tightening we’ve undertaken is hard on many Canadians,” the governor said in a Feb. 7 speech in Quebec City. “Unfortunately, there is no easy way to restore price stability. Monetary policy doesn’t work as quickly or painlessly as everyone would like, but it works.”