Czech Republic selects Rolls-Royce SMR for small reactors project

Thursday, 19 September 2024

The Czech Republic has chosen UK firm Rolls-Royce SMR after assessing seven potential technology suppliers for its proposed small modular reactor programme.

A concept image of how a Rolls-Royce SMR might look (Image: Rolls-Royce SMR)

The Ministry of Trade said that the applicants were approached "on the basis of their potential suitability for placement in the Czech Republic ... Rolls-Royce SMR emerged as the best company with which ČEZ (the Czech nuclear power company) wants to establish a strategic partnership". The government will now carry out a "safety assessment of the British company" as was done for those who bid for the recent large nuclear units contracts - involving the Ministry of the Interior, Security Information Service, ÚZSI, Military Intelligence and other key institutions to ensure it complies with the state's security requirements.

The first small modular reactor (SMR) is planned by ČEZ at a site near the existing Temelin nuclear power plant in the 2030s, "before the start up of the new large Czech nuclear unit which is planned for before 2040", the ministry said. ČEZ is also looking at other sites suitable for SMRs, including Tušimice and Dětmarovice where survey and monitoring work is taking place to see if they are suitable nuclear sites.

Rolls-Royce SMR's selection by the Czech Republic comes as the company waits to hear whether it will be selected by the UK as one of the preferred suppliers for its own SMR programme. It is one of five in the running, with the expectation that two technologies will be selected to be taken forward by the UK government's arms-length Great British Nuclear body for deployment.

The Czech government says it would be an "advantage ... that Rolls-Royce SMR is just forming its supply chain, and Czech companies thus have a unique opportunity to stand at its birth and participate to the maximum extent possible. Thanks to this strategic cooperation, local companies will be able to participate not only in the development and implementation of the new small modular reactor, but also in the supply of SMR abroad".

Prime Minister Petr Fiala said: "Small modular reactors can be a key technology for ensuring energy security in the future. That is why from the beginning we try not only to build them, but also to participate in their global production and development. In addition, the establishment of a strategic partnership between ČEZ and Rolls-Royce SMR will be a great opportunity for Czech companies that have many years of experience in the nuclear industry."

Minister of Industry and Trade Jozef Síkela said: "This technology can not only provide enough electricity at affordable prices, but also support our efforts to decarbonise and safely transition to clean energy sources. In addition, this cooperation is also a great opportunity for Czech industry. Our companies can be part of the global supply chain from the very beginning and contribute to the development of this promising technology."

ČEZ CEO Daniel Beneš said: "The strategic partnership with Rolls-Royce SMR will allow us to use our long-term experience in the field of nuclear energy in combination with the high technological maturity of the British company." He said that ČEZ would now negotiate specific terms of the cooperation with the British company.

CEO of Rolls-Royce SMR, Chris Cholerton, welcomed the decision and said: "Discussions are ongoing to finalise contract terms and the final agreements are subject to customary regulatory clearances. Details of the agreement will be published at signing. This important strategic partnership further strengthens Rolls-Royce SMR’s position as Europe’s leading SMR technology, and will put ČEZ, Rolls-Royce SMR and its existing shareholders at the forefront of SMR deployment. Rolls-Royce SMRs will be a source of clean, affordable, reliable electricity for Czechia - creating jobs, enabling decarbonisation, reducing the reliance on imported energy and supporting the global effort to reach net zero."

Nuclear Power in the Czech Republic

The Czech Republic currently gets about one-third of its electricity from four VVER-440 units at Dukovany, which began operating between 1985 and 1987, and the two VVER-1000 units in operation at Temelín, which came into operation in 2000 and 2002. In July, Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) was named the preferred bidder for up to four new units at the two existing nuclear power plants, with the target of the first unit entering commercial operation in 2038.

The Czech SMR roadmap was published and approved last year setting out options for technology suppliers and identifying a range of potential sites - 45 in total - as well as investor models. Its vision is for "SMRs to complement large nuclear untis from 2030s-40s onwards".

The Rolls-Royce SMR

The Rolls-Royce SMR is a 470 MWe design based on a small pressurised water reactor. It will provide consistent baseload generation for at least 60 years. 90% of the SMR - measuring about 16 metres by 4 metres - will be built in factory conditions, limiting on-site activity primarily to assembly of pre-fabricated, pre-tested, modules which significantly reduces project risk and has the potential to drastically shorten build schedules.

Its capacity is larger than many of its SMR rivals - the general definition of an SMR is of a reactor unit with an output of up to 300 MWe. In July, it successfully completed Step 2 of the UK's Generic Design Assessment process and progressed to the third and final phase of the process which assesses the safety, security and environmental aspects of a nuclear power plant design that is intended to be deployed in the UK. The target date to complete that final stage is August 2026.

In July, the Nuclear Industry Association applied to the UK government for a justification decision for Rolls-Royce SMR's SMR, a decision required for the operation of a new nuclear technology in the country. It marks the first ever application for justification of a UK reactor design. If Rolls-Royce is successful in the UK's SMR selection contest, the aim is for a final investment decision to be taken in the UK in 2029.

MICHIGAN

Palisades on schedule for repowering, NRC considers restart regulations

Thursday, 19 September 2024

The programme to restart the Palisades nuclear power plant in Michigan is now in the inspections and maintenance phase and remains on schedule, Holtec International said in its latest update. Meanwhile, the US regulator has been petitioned to codify regulations for restarting shuttered nuclear power plants.

Inspection work is carried out on the containment building dome and structural tendon system at Palisades (Image: Holtec)

Recent progress at the plant, in Covert Township, has included initial accreditation for Holtec's operations and maintenance and technical training programmes, requalification of 26 former Palisades licensed operators, significant workforce growth, completion of chemical cleaning of the primary coolant system , and comprehensive reactor vessel internal inspections. The chemical cleaning has "had a dramatic effect on further improving the plant’s occupational radiation safety metrics", Holtec said.

The focus has now shifted to detailed inspections and maintenance of major systems, including the main turbine, containment building structure, high-voltage towers and transformers. Detailed inspections of the plant’s steam generators have been completed, during which the need for additional maintenance activities was identified, Holtec said: "Thorough and early inspections have allowed us to proactively identify and implement the needed refurbishments before Palisades returns to service. Palisades's owner’s engineer, Nuclear Consultants International (NCI, an autonomous Holtec affiliate), is working with experienced on-site and external experts to devise and implement industry-proven solutions."

Preparations are also nearly complete for a five-month campaign to transfer used fuel assemblies currently stored in the plant’s fuel pool to Hi-Storm FW dry fuel storage systems at a unified on-site storage facility, designed and built by Holtec’s Nuclear Power Division.

“As nuclear professionals, restoring the plant to its highest level of safety is our utmost priority. Our primary focus remains ensuring that Palisades returns to service safely and reliably, with all necessary repairs and maintenance completed to the highest standards,” said Holtec Chief Nuclear Officer Rich Burroni.

Palisades' single-unit 800 MWe pressurised water reactor was shut down in 2022, after more than 40 years of commercial operation, and was to be decommissioned. Holtec completed its acquisition of the reactor from then-owner and operator Entergy shortly after the reactor's closure, with plans to finish dismantling, decontamination, and remediation by 2041. The same month, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) transferred the plant's operating licence to Holtec for the purpose of decommissioning.

But Holtec then announced plans to apply for federal funding to enable it to reopen the plant, and in October 2023 submitted a filing with the NRC to formally begin the process of seeking reauthorisation of power operations at the plant. The company is aiming to repower the plant by the end of 2025. It would be the first nuclear power plant in the USA to return to commercial operations after being closed down, and current plans would see it provide baseload clean power until at least 2051.

Regulatory process

According to NRC information, Holtec will need to explain to the regulator how it will return plant components to a status that supports safe operation; restore the licensing basis of the plant to an operational status, and make any upgrades necessary to meet current NRC requirements. NRC staff will carefully review the regulatory and licensing documents for the plant, inspect new and restored components necessary to operate safely, and continue ongoing oversight to ensure sufficiency of all plant systems and programmes. The NRC has established the Palisades Nuclear Plant Restart Panel to provide oversight of the restart effort.

Palisades may not be the only shuttered US plant to return to service: earlier this year, NextEra Energy CEO John Ketchum told investors the company was considering the possibility of restarting the Duane Arnold boiling water reactor plant, which closed in 2020. Constellation Energy CEO Joe Dominguez has also, in comments to investors, not ruled out a restart of Three Mile Island unit 1 which closed in 2019.

Now, the US regulator has been petitioned to revise its regulations to include a Commission-approved process for returning a decommissioning plant to operational status. In an entry in the US Federal Register, the NRC said it has determined that the petition "meets the sufficiency requirements" for it to be documented, and is calling for public comment. The petition was submitted by a former engineering director of the plant and an investigative journalist, with community members near the plant adding their signatures.

"The petition states that the NRC staff lack a specific NRC Commission-approved and codified process for licensing, inspecting, and approving the return to service of a power reactor that has entered decommissioning. The petitioner requests that the NRC conduct rulemaking to include a codified process for returning a decommissioning plant to operational status," the NRC said.

The review of the petition is a separate process from the ongoing NRC consideration of requested actions related to the potential restart of the Palisades Nuclear Plant, the regulator added.

 

GERMANY

Environmental challenge to Konrad repository dismissed

Thursday, 19 September 2024

The Lower Saxony Ministry of the Environment has rejected an application from environmental groups NABU and BUND to revoke or withdraw the planning approval decision for the Konrad repository for low and intermediate-level radioactive waste.

The former Konrad mine (Image: BGE)

The former Konrad iron ore mine - in Salzgitter, Lower Saxony - closed for economic reasons in 1976 and investigations began the same year to determine whether the mine was suitable for use as a repository for low and intermediate-level radioactive waste (LLW/ILW).

In 2002, the Lower Saxony Ministry for the Environment issued a planning approval decision for the Konrad repository. Following multiple legal proceedings, this approval was confirmed by the Federal Administrative Court in 2007. A construction licence was issued in January 2008.

However, in May 2021, NABU and BUND submitted an application to withdraw or revoke the existing planning approval decision for the Konrad repository and to stop construction.

The Lower Saxony Ministry of the Environment has now dismissed the application "after intensive legal and substantive review".

Federal radioactive waste company, Bundesgesellschaft für Endlagerung (BGE) - which assumed responsibility as the operator of the Konrad repository from the Federal Office for Radiation Protection in April 2017 - welcomed the decision.

"This finding once again confirms that the planning approval decision for the Konrad repository is legal," it said. "BGE will continue to push ahead with the construction of the Konrad repository so that the majority of low and medium-level radioactive waste from Germany can be safely disposed of."

Thomas Lautsch, technical director of BGE, added: "With the planning approval decision for the Konrad repository, we have a robust basis for the construction, operation and decommissioning of the Konrad repository. The construction will take place on this basis and will also be implemented in accordance with the current technical regulations."

The Konrad mine is being converted for use as a repository under the supervision of BGE. The two mine shafts are being renovated and equipped with the necessary infrastructure underground. Among other things, this infrastructure includes transport galleries and the emplacement areas at a depth of around 850 metres. Above ground, construction work is under way on new buildings, including the reloading hall.

The final disposal of up to 303,000 cubic metres of LLW/ILW at Konrad is set to begin in the early 2030s. This waste represents 95% of the country's waste volume, with 1% of the radioactivity. At present, this waste is stored above-ground in interim storage facilities at more than 30 locations in Germany. Once within the Konrad repository, the containers will be immobilised with suitable concrete and securely sealed off during emplacement operations. Once operations are complete, all cavities of the mine will be backfilled and sealed in a manner that ensures long-term safety.

 

UPDATE

South Yorkshire chosen for Holtec's proposed UK SMR factory

Friday, 20 September 2024

USA-based Holtec International has selected South Yorkshire in England as the preferred site for its proposed UK small modular reactor factory. It has also signed memorandums of understanding with two British research centres to support SMR manufacturing and testing.

Holtec's image of a two-unit SMR-300 plant (Image: Holtec)

Holtec's selection process involved evaluation of 13 locations that responded to a call for interest released by Holtec earlier this year, after which four locations - West Midlands, South Yorkshire, Cumbria and Tees Valley - were shortlisted. Holtec's UK subsidiary, Holtec Britain, has now selected South Yorkshire as the location for its new SMR factory to serve the UK, Europe and the Middle East.

According to the company, the factory is estimated to provide GBP1.5 billion (USD2 billion) in Gross Value Added to the economy and is set to create hundreds of well-paid, high-skilled jobs.

Holtec said that at least 70% of materials, components and services will be sourced from the UK, with significant supply chain opportunities, particularly in and around South Yorkshire.

"Holtec Britain was impressed by the resounding interest in our new SMR factory across the UK and the strong support received by the local authorities during our engagements," said Gareth Thomas, Director of Holtec Britain. "However, after a rigorous process, South Yorkshire was finally selected as our preferred location.

"In addition to the technical, supply chain, training, and logistics criteria for the formal evaluation, we were also impressed by the history and pride of the people we met during our visit to South Yorkshire, which demonstrated the workforce really cares about the quality and reputation of their work. For Holtec, that translates to a workforce that can be trained and will remain committed to delivering the high-quality nuclear products that Holtec, and our customers, demand."

Holtec said it was working to finalise its factory business plan to support its Final Investment Decision, based on its UK and international order book.

Holtec has been developing its SMR unit since 2011. The SMR-300 is a pressurised water reactor producing around 300 MW of electrical power or 1050 MW of thermal power for process applications, and the company says it has undergone several design evolutions, the most recent of which is the incorporation of forced flow capability overlayed on gravity-driven flow in the plant's primary system.

The SMR-300 is one of six SMR designs selected in October last year by Great British Nuclear on a shortlist for the UK's SMR selection competition and one of the five vendors to submit a bid by the 8 July deadline. The aim is for a final investment decision on two or three of the designs to be taken in 2029.

Holtec proposes to deploy around 5 GWe of SMRs in serial production in the UK by 2050.

In December 2023, Holtec secured GBP30 million from the UK government's Future Nuclear Enabling Fund to start the generic design assessment (GDA) process, and completed the first step last month.

The company said it is on track to begin the licensing and construction of two SMR-300 units at its Palisades nuclear power plant site in Michigan. It is aiming to file a construction permit application for the two Palisades SMRs in 2026 with the first SMR-300 plant targeted for mid-2030, subject to regulatory reviews and oversight.

Cooperation agreements

Holtec has also announced that it has signed memorandums of understanding with two UK research centres within the High Value Manufacturing Catapult - the University of Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) and the Coventry-based Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) - to support SMR manufacturing and testing.

The MoU with AMRC agrees that both parties will conduct in-depth analysis of manufacturing technology efficiency and UK skills challenges. Holtec and AMRC will also explore collaboration on SMRs, large-scale nuclear and fusion in both the civil and defence sectors.

"With the signing of this MoU, we're delighted to work with Holtec on a number of manufacturing technology challenges that will bring enhanced efficiency, productivity and impact for the UK - which is at the very core of what we do at the AMRC and indeed, the wider High Value Manufacturing Catapult, said AMRC CEO Steve Foxley.

Holtec Britain's Thomas said: "Our MoU is a serious statement of intent to cement our UK footprint to service the UK domestic market with UK R&D, UK jobs and a fully integrated UK supply chain." 

The MoU signed between Holtec Britain and MTC is aimed at supporting the manufacturing and testing of the SMR-300. The agreement states that both parties will work together to find the best manufacturing processes and solutions for the SMR-300. MTC will leverage its expertise to explore innovative manufacturing processes for a future testing phase and both parties will work collaboratively from proof of concept to final installation, training and support after project completion.

"Through our partnership with Holtec, not only will we deliver the innovations needed by one company, but also support end-to-end supply chain development to help anchor this growth sector in the UK," said MTC Senior Business Development Manager Andrew Bowfield.

Thomas added: "Our MoU with the world class MTC is a landmark moment for Holtec Britain as we commit to build on our historic UK nuclear history and use this SMR moment to grow jobs with a fully integrated UK supply chain."

EXPANSION BABY, EXPANSION

Industry groups ask governments to commit to nuclear expansion

Thursday, 19 September 2024

Ten industry associations have issued a communiqué calling on all OECD member states to set out clear plans for nuclear energy deployment. The document was released during the first day of the second Roadmaps to New Nuclear conference in Paris, organised by the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency.

(Image: OECD NEA)

Co-chaired by Swedish Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Energy, Business and Industry, Ebba Busch, and OECD NEA Director-General William Magwood, the OECD NEA said at the event "ministers, CEOs and other leaders will discuss concrete ways to make good on global pledges to increase nuclear energy production to fight climate change".

It added: "Building on the success of Roadmaps to New Nuclear 2023, ministers, senior government officials and industry representatives will convene to share recent experiences, deliberate on best practices and chart a collaborative path towards delivering new nuclear energy construction at the scale and pace required to meet the growing global expectations for nuclear energy.

"Whereas Roadmaps 2023 provided a general direction for collective action, which was followed by a pledge by more than 20 countries at COP28 to triple global nuclear energy capacity by 2050, this second meeting will focus on critical next steps to bring solutions to the countries most interested in proceeding with nuclear new build."

The NEA said the discussions during the two-day event "will inform the development of actionable policy recommendations for policymakers, nuclear power companies and the nuclear energy sector more broadly".

The nuclear industry - represented by the Canadian Nuclear Association, Candu Owners Group, the Electric Power Research Institute, Groupement des Industriels Français de l'Energie Nucléaire (Gifen), Japan Atomic Industrial Forum, Korea Atomic Industrial Forum, Nuclear Energy Institute, nucleareurope, Nuclear Industry Association and World Nuclear Association - issued a communiqué saying: "We congratulate those OECD member states that signed the Declaration to Triple Nuclear at COP28. We urge all OECD member states to set out clear plans for nuclear energy deployment that would fulfil the targets they have set through the UNFCCC process and to demonstrate their commitment to nuclear energy, giving clear signals to markets and investors."

The associations said they recognise that meeting a tripling of nuclear capacity by "2050 will require significant expansion in access to financing, strengthening of supply chains, investment in workforce, further development of the nuclear fuel supply and supportive policies and regulations to enable rapid scaling of nuclear energy generation".

They called on governments to help maximise the use of existing nuclear power plants, including extending the operating period of reactors, uprating their output and restarting those that have shutdown where feasible. They said governments should act to accelerate deployment of new nuclear facilities based on proven designs, and accelerate the development, demonstration, and deployment of new nuclear technologies, including new large nuclear reactors as well as small modular reactors and advanced modular reactors.

The associations highlighted eight key areas in which governments must take action in order to achieve the 2050 target. These include: promoting policies to encourage fleet deployment of nuclear energy technologies; ensuring ready access to national and international climate finance mechanisms for nuclear development; ensuring that multilateral financial institutions include nuclear energy in their investment portfolios; providing clarity to investors on the funding and investment recovery mechanisms available for nuclear projects and including nuclear energy in clean energy financing mechanisms; continuing efforts to strengthen supply chains for nuclear fuel in OECD member states; investing in workforce development and training; continuing investments in nuclear research and efforts to bolster the nuclear supply chain within OECD member states; and expanding regulatory cooperation.

"The communiqué issued today congratulates those OECD member states that signed the Declaration to Triple Nuclear at COP28, and encourages other member states to join," said Sama Bilbao y León, Director General, World Nuclear Association. "The goal to triple global nuclear capacity is also shared by industry through the Net Zero Nuclear initiative highlighting government and industry collaboration. The time is now to expand nuclear capacity and provide clean, reliable and secure energy for all."

New initiative launched

The NEA announced it will create a new Joint Undertaking on Roadmaps to New Nuclear that will "bring together like-minded countries to rebuild their capability to implement successful nuclear energy new-build projects".

The initiative will focus on addressing the most pressing issues in nuclear energy, including nuclear finance, supply chain readiness and building a skilled and diverse workforce.

So far, 13 countries (Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, France, Hungary, Japan, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, South Korea, Sweden, the UK and the USA) have expressed interest in the initiative.

"The Joint Undertaking on Roadmaps to New Nuclear will allow us to turn the priorities identified by Ministers and CEOs into practical actions to support the tripling of nuclear energy capacity by 2050," OECD NEA Director-General William Magwood said. "This collaborative framework will advance international cooperation, foster strategic partnerships, and exchanges among governments and industry to more effectively deliver on the national priorities of the countries pursuing new nuclear capacity."

 

Darlington 1 refurbishment on target for early completion

Friday, 20 September 2024

Ontario Power Generation's (OPG) project to refurbish the four Candu units at Darlington is now 86% complete, with unit 1 preparing to restart ahead of schedule. Meanwhile disassembly work on unit 4 continues - and the company has announced its latest corporate green bond issue.

(Image: OPG)

The reactor and supporting systems at Darlington 1 are undergoing tests in preparation for regulatory approval to restart the unit in the final quarter of this year, OPG said in its latest update on the project which covers the period to 30 June. "At the end of this report period, Unit 1 refurbishment execution was 95% complete, on plan, with the restoration of the reactor vault forecasted to be complete in Q3," the company said.

The execution of the refurbishment of unit 4, which began in July 2023, is 42% complete and is on plan, with recent highlights including the completion of calandria tube insert removal, allowing for ongoing work to remove the unit's 480 calandria tubes and pressure tubes which is expected to be completed during the current quarter.

"The refurbishment of the four Darlington units remains on plan for completion by the end of 2026, as committed," the company said. "Unit 1 is on track to complete in Q4 2024, ahead of plan."

The Darlington units are being refurbished in a CAD12.8 billion (USD9.7 billion) project that will enable the station to operate for an additional 30 years. Unit 2 was the first to be refurbished and returned to service in June 2020; unit 3 returned to service in July 2023.

OPG has also initiated a project to refurbish four Candu units at the Pickering nuclear power station, as well as planning to build up to four BWRX-300 small modular reactors (SMRs) at its Darlington New Nuclear project.

On 18 September, the company announced the issue of CAD300 million (USD221 million) of bonds under its Sustainable Finance Framework and said it will use the net proceeds to fund a range of low-carbon energy projects. Under a new Sustainable Finance Framework announced in June, OPG may use funds from the bonds for energy-related projects and programmes including new nuclear projects, such as SMRs, and large new nuclear, in addition to maintenance or refurbishment of existing facilities.

OPG has issued a total of CAD4.6 billion in green bonds since 2018, including offerings by its subsidiaries. To date in 2024, OPG and its subsidiaries have issued CAD1.5 billion in green bonds, including CAD1.3 billion under the Sustainable Finance Framework.

GOOD NEWS

China-Japan accord on monitoring of Fukushima water releases

Friday, 20 September 2024

China looks set to start lifting its ban on the import of Japanese fishery products after reaching an agreement with Japan for the independent monitoring of the discharge of treated water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant by China and other countries.

Workers take samples of the diluted water before the second discharge began (Image: Tepco)

At the Fukushima Daiichi site, contaminated water - in part used to cool melted nuclear fuel - is treated by the Advanced Liquid Processing System (ALPS), which removes most of the radioactive contamination, with the exception of tritium. This treated water is currently stored in tanks on site.

Japan announced in April 2021 it planned to discharge ALPS-treated water into the sea over a period of about 30 years. It started to discharge the water on 24 August last year and has so far completed the release of eight batches, a total of 62,400 cubic metres of water.

"As one of the most important stakeholders, China is firmly opposed to this irresponsible move," China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. "At the same time, China has urged Japan to seriously address concerns in and outside Japan, to earnestly fulfill its obligations, to give full cooperation in the establishment of an independent and effective long-term international monitoring arrangement in which stakeholders can participate substantively, and to accept independent sampling and monitoring by China."

Japan and China have now reached an agreement that allows stakeholders, including China, to conduct independent sampling, monitoring and inter-laboratory comparisons at key stages of the discharge process, which is currently being monitored by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

"Taking into account the interests of all stakeholder countries, including China, Japan welcomes the expansion of long-term and international monitoring at key stages of the ocean release under the IAEA framework, and will ensure that all stakeholder countries, including China, effectively participate in this monitoring and that independent sampling and inter-laboratory comparisons are conducted by the participating countries," said Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

"China states that it has taken temporary emergency precautions against aquatic products of Japanese origin according to relevant Chinese laws and regulations and WTO rules," the Chinese ministry said. "After China participates substantively in the long-term international monitoring within the IAEA framework and the independent sampling and other monitoring activities by participating countries are carried out, China will begin to adjust the relevant measures based on scientific evidence and gradually resume imports of Japanese aquatic products that meet the regulation requirements and standards."

The agreement was welcomed by IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi, who said: "I wish to commend the government of Japan for its continued engagement with the IAEA, and the government of China for the constructive consultations held with the Agency in support of this bilateral process that comes to a positive conclusion today."

The agreement, Grossi said, "has built on our existing sampling and monitoring activities in compliance with the IAEA statutory functions". He said the IAEA will coordinate with Japan and other stakeholders, including China, to ensure that the additional measures are implemented appropriately under the framework of the IAEA, "maintaining the integrity of the process with full transparency to ensure that water discharge levels are, and will continue to be, in strict compliance and consistent with international safety standards".

Japan and China have agreed to "continue constructive dialogue from a scientific perspective, in a responsible manner towards the ecological environment and people's health, and to appropriately address concerns regarding the ocean release of ALPS-treated water."

IAEA experts stationed at the Fukushima Daiichi plant have taken samples from the batches of diluted water, after they were prepared for discharge. The IAEA's independent on-site analysis has confirmed that the tritium concentration in the diluted water that has so far been discharged is far below the operational limit of 1500 Bq/litre. The IAEA says it will have a presence on site for as long as the treated water is released.

 WAIT, WHAT?!

Constellation to restart Three Mile Island unit, powering Microsoft

Friday, 20 September 2024

Constellation has signed a 20-year power purchase agreement with Microsoft that will see Three Mile Island unit 1 restarted, five years after it was shut down.

Three Mile Island unit 1 was shuttered in 2019 (Image: NRC/Exelon)

Constellation purchased the 837 MWe Three Mile Island Unit 1, in 1999. The unit, which had enough capacity to power 800,000 homes, was retired prematurely for economic reasons in 2019. In its last year of operation, the plant was producing electricity at maximum capacity 96.3% of the time - well above the industry average and employed more than 600 full-time workers.

The Unit 1 reactor is located adjacent to TMI Unit 2, which was shut down in 1979 after an accident which resulted in severe damage to the reactor core and is in the process of being decommissioned by its owner, Energy Solutions. 

Constellation says "significant investments will be made to restore" unit 1 "including the turbine, generator, main power transformer and cooling and control systems. Restarting a nuclear reactor requires US Nuclear Regulatory Commission approval following a comprehensive safety and environmental review, as well as permits from relevant state and local agencies. Additionally, through a separate request, Constellation will pursue licence renewal that will extend plant operations to at least 2054".

The plant is to be renamed the Crane Clean Energy Centre - after Chris Cane, who was CEO of Constellation's parent company and passed away in April. The aim is for it to be online in 2028. Constellation says it aims to operate it for decades to come, and will create 3400 direct and indirect jobs and deliver more than USD3 billion in state and federal taxes

"This agreement is a major milestone in Microsoft's efforts to help decarbonise the grid in support of our commitment to become carbon negative. Microsoft continues to collaborate with energy providers to develop carbon-free energy sources to help meet the grids' capacity and reliability needs," said Bobby Hollis, vice president of energy, Microsoft.

Joe Dominguez, president and CEO, Constellation, said: "Powering industries critical to our nation’s global economic and technological competitiveness, including data centres, requires an abundance of energy that is carbon-free and reliable every hour of every day, and nuclear plants are the only energy sources that can consistently deliver on that promise. Before it was prematurely shuttered due to poor economics, this plant was among the safest and most reliable nuclear plants on the grid, and we look forward to bringing it back with a new name and a renewed mission to serve as an economic engine for Pennsylvania."

Governor Josh Shapiro said: "Under the careful watch of state and federal authorities, the Crane Clean Energy Center will safely utilise existing infrastructure to sustain and expand nuclear power in the Commonwealth while creating thousands of energy jobs and strengthening Pennsylvania’s legacy as a national energy leader."

Michael Goff, Acting Assistant Secretary, Department of Energy's Office of Nuclear Energy, said: "Always-on, carbon-free nuclear energy plays an important role in the fight against climate change and meeting the country's growing energy demands."

Friday's announcement could see the unit become the second in the USA - and the world - to return to operational status after being shut down for decommissioning. Holtec International is currently working to bring the Palisades single-unit pressurised water reactor in Michigan, which closed in 2022, bring back into service and is aiming to repower the plant by the end of 2025.

Earlier this year, the US Department of Energy Loan Programs Office conditionally committed up to USD1.52 billion for a loan guarantee to Holtec Palisades for the project, and in June US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm told Reuters she would be "surprised" if the office was not talking to other owners of shuttered plants about potential restarts.

BlackRock and Microsoft Partner on $30 Billion AI Infrastructure Fund

By ZeroHedge - Sep 20, 2024, 

• BlackRock and Microsoft are launching a $30 billion AI infrastructure fund to address the growing energy demands of artificial intelligence.
• 
  
• The fund will invest in data centers, energy projects, and other infrastructure needed to support AI development.
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• Nvidia will provide advisory on factory design and integration, while MGX and Global Infrastructure Partners are also involved.
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As we have been writing for the better part of the last year, the next AI trade continues to look like it's going to be energy. And now, both BlackRock and Microsoft are making it known that they understand this, too. 

Yesterday it was reported that the two industry giants are prepping the launch of a $30 billion AI investment fund that'll see Microsoft build data centers and energy projects to meet the demands of AI, according to the Financial Times.

BlackRock’s new infrastructure investment unit, Global Infrastructure Partners, is launching a major investment fund with Microsoft and Abu Dhabi’s MGX as general partners. Nvidia will provide advisory on factory design and integration.

The FT wrote that the partnership aims to tackle the massive power and infrastructure needs of AI development, which is expected to strain current energy systems. AI’s computing demands far exceed past technologies.

The partnership seeks to raise up to $30bn in equity, with plans to leverage an additional $70bn in debt.

In a statement, Larry Fink said: “Mobilizing private capital to build AI infrastructure like data centers and power will unlock a multitrillion-dollar long-term investment opportunity.”

Brad Smith, Microsoft’s president, added: “The country and the world are going to need more capital investment to accelerate the development of the AI infrastructure needed. This kind of effort is an important step.”

Jensen Huang of Nvidia added: “Accelerated computing and generative AI are driving a growing need for AI infrastructure for the next industrial revolution.”

The upcoming fund is the latest by a major asset manager to address the rising energy needs of generative AI and cloud computing. Earlier this year, Microsoft committed $10bn to renewable energy projects with Brookfield Asset Management and aims for 100% zero-carbon energy by 2030, the Financial Times concluded. 

The International Energy Agency predicts global electricity consumption by data centers could exceed 1,000 terawatt-hours by 2026, more than double the 2022 level.

In the U.S., which houses a third of the world’s data centers, electricity demand is surging for the first time in 20 years. A report from Grid Strategies shows five-year electricity demand projections in the U.S. have nearly doubled, from 2.6% to 4.7%.

For those who missed it, in our note "The Next AI Trade" from April of this year, we outlined various investment opportunities for powering up America, most of which have dramatically outperformed the market.

A favorite name of ours has been the Sam Altman-backed Oklo, which we have highlighted as the potential solution to the extreme forthcoming demands in energy as a result of artificial intelligence. It makes nuclear power plants, ranging from 15 MWe to 50 MWe, utilizing liquid metal reactor technology, in soon-to-be everywhere small modular reactors. 

By Zerohedge.com

MONOPOLY CAPITALI$M

A copper M&A frenzy masks big miners’ hesitation to build

Bloomberg News | September 19, 2024 |

Computer rendition of Oak Dam facilities. Credit: BHP

In the dusty, treeless outback of Southern Australia, a brand new mining camp is home to a hundred workers, putting in 12-hour days, two weeks at a time. Dozens of trucks are scattered across the vast acreage, mounted with towering rigs drilling more than 2 kilometers (1.3 miles) underground. All are focused on the hunt for one of the world’s most coveted minerals: copper.


Oak Dam, discovered by BHP Group geologists in 2018, is a glimmer of hope for chief executive Mike Henry, who sees global copper demand doubling over the coming decades as the energy transition takes hold, and wants his company to produce more of it. The deposit is also a rarity — if all goes to plan, a new operation will be built here by the world’s largest miner, from scratch.

“Globally, there would be few companies conducting drilling campaigns of this scale, to this depth,” said Michael Fonti, BHP’s main exploration geologist at the site, pointing out a diagram of the cone-shaped deposit.

Fonti has spent more than two decades on sites much like this one, working most recently at the miner’s nearby Olympic Dam, a vast, challenging copper and uranium operation. But even for BHP — a $140 billion company which generated almost $12 billion in free cash flow in the last financial year — large, greenfield projects are scarce, and becoming more so. Deals, not discoveries, are grabbing the headlines.

Copper’s bull narrative, which helped prices hit an all-time high in May, is well understood. Electrification, wealthier populations and an expanding, energy-hungry technology sector are vast new sources of demand. An electric vehicle requires roughly three times the copper that goes into a conventional car, and the energy transition won’t happen without enough red metal for grids, batteries and chips.

This should all be prompting a surge in prospecting and digging, to ensure supply keeps up, especially as large, established mines age. It isn’t — and that risks making this much-needed metal punitively expensive.

Miners have been in spending purgatory for over a decade, atoning for the excesses of the last boom. For years, investors demanded generous returns, not production growth and certainly not risk. But now that diggers can open the purse strings again, high costs, slow permits and other hurdles are pushing the largest metal producers to buy — not build.

BHP, even with its effort to build out the copper belt of South Australia, is no exception.

Asked at its earnings briefing last month, Henry said the company was opportunistic about deals and not pursuing them at the expense of exploration, nor was BHP making a blanket decision on cost. There was no rule of thumb on buying or building, he said.

Still, in less than two years, BHP has bought copper and gold producer OZ Minerals for $6.4 billion, betting on South Australia’s copper province; tried and failed to buy peer Anglo American Plc for $49 billion, in large part for its South American copper mines; then in July agreed to buy copper miner Filo Corp. jointly with Lundin Mining Corp, a bet on a project in development on the Argentina/Chile border.

“Mining is cyclical, and a key factor driving the trend of buying over building is the point in the cycle,” said Campbell Cooper, a Melbourne-based advisor at Greenhill & Co., an investment bank. “Recent years have also seen an acceleration in the cost of building new mine capacity. Arguably that cost may not be fully reflected in equity valuations, making buying more attractive.”

Building from zero, in short, is both worryingly risky and unappealingly pricey.

No wonder, then, that only roughly a quarter of the sector’s sanctioned — or approved — projects between 2019 and 2023 were of the greenfield variety, according to analysts at Jefferies LLC. That’s down from more than half in the 2009 to 2013 period. The size of new projects is also shrinking.


“There was a raft of copper discoveries in the 1950s, 60s, 70s, and 80s,” said BHP’s Fonti. “Everything being produced now is from that era of discoveries.” Escondida, the world’s largest copper mine, dates back to the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Of course, BHP has invested in development — it approved nearly $5 billion for its potash operation last year — but its exploration budget remains modest, even for copper. While it has nearly tripled its annual greenfield spending from the start of the decade to $124 million in the year to June, that compares to $324 million spent on greenfield exploration alone back in its 2012 financial year.

Peers follow similar patterns. Rio Tinto Group, which has not done large-scale deals of late, spent $300 million on greenfield exploration in 2023. Anglo American Plc and Freeport-McMoRan Inc have spent less. Glencore Plc does not detail exploration spending, but its focus has been on existing deposits in its portfolio.

“Ultimately the industry needs continual investment in exploration and new discoveries. M&A is important to put assets into the hands of the optimal owners, but will not materially increase overall industry supply,” said Sam Brodovcky, head of metals and mining M&A at Standard Chartered Plc. “And for key commodities such as copper, we need to increase supply not only to replenish depleting mines but also to keep up with growing demand as the world industrializes and transitions to clean energy.”

Henry says large players like BHP are well placed when it comes to adding supply. As greenfield risks increase, the industry’s behemoths can unlock more metal with the expansion of existing projects, thanks to large balance sheets and technical capability.

They are also betting on less risky exploration by supporting junior miners — as with BHP’s Xplor program, which provides modest funding with the potential for much more if prospecting is successful.

What is less clear is whether this will be enough to provide the metal the world needs.


Juniors, lower down the mining food chain, have long taken on much of the sector’s exploration risk. But that proportion is now increasing just as investment in smaller outfits falls.

“We’ve got to a point where we’re quite reliant on juniors to explore. It’s very difficult seeing that continuing if they’re not getting the equity that they need,” said Sandra Occhipinti, a geologist and researcher at Australia’s national science agency, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation.

Richard Schodde, a veteran geologist and expert on South Australia’s copper belt, puts the number of discoveries made each year at only a handful. He describes BHP’s lucky strike at Oak Dam in 2018 “was probably the most spectacular” of recent years.

Price is clearly one reason holding back the splurge that could change that. Copper has enjoyed a bull run on fears of supply disruption and hopes of soaring green demand. Prices topped $11,000 a ton earlier this year. But the global economy is faltering and copper needs to reach $12,000 a ton — a near-30% jump on current prices — to incentivize large-scale investments in new mines, according to Olivia Markham, who co-manages the BlackRock World Mining Fund.


Copper’s improvement since the price trough of 2020 has not been enough. Costs are rising too fast as exploration teams need go deeper, into more technically challenging deposits or into less desirable regions.

Take Oak Dam, where the bottom of the deposit is some four kilometers underground — depths where heat from the earth’s core starts to become a problem. Or even Olympic Dam’s next phase of exploration, Olympic Dam Deeps. BHP’s recently acquired Filo asset in South America, meanwhile, sits some 5,000 meters above sea level, where the air is so thin helicopters struggle to hover.

“Once upon a time you could just kick rocks. It’s not for the faint-hearted — and only one exploration campaign out of a thousand results in a discovery,” says Karol Czarnota, a director at Geoscience Australia, a government agency set up to encourage mining. Oak Dam was found using some of its data.

One area of good news is technology. New gadgets and better geological information are allowing even the reassessment of existing repositories of data. Core libraries around Australia, for example, hold over 100 million meters of rocks from drilling campaigns of past booms, free for geologists looking for mineralization missed by others.

But even at Oak Dam, a deposit that was almost missed until new geophysics techniques could unlock it, that cheer is tempered. The slow pace of mine development means a final investment decision will not come until 2027 at the earliest. Copper production will still be years away.

(By Paul-Alain Hunt)

CHART: Global mining and metals – a quick reality check

Frik Els | September 19, 2024 | 

Back in black. 

A new report by McKinsey’s energy and materials practice outlines a global mining and metals industry emerging from a few years of boom and bust and price fluctuations the consulting firm calls unprecedented in scale.


Nevertheless, says McKinsey, the industry is in healthier financial shape compared to historical averages.

From 2000 to 2023, metals and mining revenues grew by $1.7 trillion, a jump of roughly 75% and affording the industry a 70% slice of the overall materials business which also includes plastics, pulp, and building materials. As a whole, materials represent some 7% of the global GDP.

Profits in the industry have also been robust with mining, refining and metal fabrication EBITDA nearly doubling over the almost quarter century going from $500 billion to $900 billion.

Moreover, Mckinsey points out, mining and metal companies’ debt burden has decreased with net debt over EBITDA ratios of 1.3 times, well below the through-cycle average of 1.8 times.

“However, 2024 has already proven to be a more challenging year for the industry as overall economic growth slows down and the shift toward low-carbon technologies unfolds more slowly than expected, both of which are putting downward pressure on price levels, especially for battery materials, such as nickel and lithium,” McKinsey says.

Source: McKinsey’s Global Energy & Materials Practice

 – Global Materials Perspective 2024

Not only are battery and other metals associated with decarbonisation facing headwinds, the sector – even when lumping in bellwether copper – hardly makes up 15% of global metals and mining revenues. Until such time the copper price reaches the levels predicted by more outlandish scenarios, the share is not likely to grow much.

For instance, the market size of rare earths mining, and metal and alloy production (included in the other section of the graph) which is used in defence applications and many energy transition applications including wind turbines and motors for electric vehicles, is below $20 billion.

Thermal coal and steel account for around 60%–70% of revenues and production volumes of 7 billion tonnes and 2 billion tonnes respectively are more than 30 times higher than all other metals and minerals combined. Output by the largest among the latter, aluminum, at roughly 100 million tonnes, does not make much of a dent in the overall total.

The bulk of mining and metals activity and revenues remains subjected to the ups and downs of the global economy, particularly the outlook for China where the signs are not great.

While the green energy transition may rightfully represent a new dawn for mining, it’s still very early in the morning.