It’s possible that I shall make an ass of myself. But in that case one can always get out of it with a little dialectic. I have, of course, so worded my proposition as to be right either way (K.Marx, Letter to F.Engels on the Indian Mutiny)
Sunday, February 26, 2023
Ecuador Calls Force Majeure On Almost All Of Its Oil Production
Ecuador's oil production is expected to be offline for at least three weeks, the country's government said on Friday after declaring a force majeure on Thursday.
Ecuador announced the force majeure for its oil industry following a Marker River bridge collapse that triggered a closure of crude oil and gas pipelines. Petroecuador and pipeline operator OCP Ecuador suspended pipelines on Wednesday after the bridge collapsed.
On Thursday, Petroecuador said it would gradually shut oil wells, estimating that it would be seven days before pumping would begin to restart.
"By virtue of the force majeure, occasioned by the collapse of a bridge on the Marker River due to heavy seasonal rains, force majeure is declared for operators of exploration and exploitation of hydrocarbons which have been affected by hydrocarbon transport through the SOTE, OCP and Shushufindi Quito polyduct systems and the impossibility they have of receiving and transporting crude oil," Ecuador's Ministry said on Thursday.
But the country's oil production is looking like it will be out for longer.
On Friday, Energy Minister Fernando Santos said, "Turning off wells is simple, but restarting them is a bit complicated, we're talking about maybe some three weeks."
Ecuador routinely has trouble with its SOT and OCP pipelines that create stoppages due to tubing damage from rocks and landslides.
Ecuador's economy heavily depends on oil production and exports, with government data showing that oil accounted for one-third of the country's oil exports, and World Bank data suggesting that oil rents were responsible for 7% of its gross domestic product.
Ecuadorian President Lasso said that the country would strive to double its oil production by the end of his term in 2025, which would mean a total of nearly a million barrels per day.
State-controlled Petroecuador is responsible for 80% of the country's oil output.
By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com
SCI FI TECH
Power plasma with gigajoule energy turnover generated for eight minutes
Experiment hall with Wendelstein 7-X in Greifswald. The fusion facility is the most modern and largest stellarator in the world. Credit: MPI für Plasmaphysik / Jan Hosan
After successful recommissioning in autumn 2022, the Greifswald nuclear fusion experiment has surpassed an important target. In 2023, an energy turnover of 1 gigajoule was targeted. Now the researchers have even achieved 1.3 gigajoules and a new record for discharge time on Wendelstein 7-X: the hot plasma could be maintained for eight minutes.
During the three-year completion work that ended last summer, Wendelstein 7-X was primarily equipped with water cooling for the wall elements and an upgraded heating system. The latter can now couple twice as much power into the plasma as before. Since then, the nuclear fusion experiment can be operated in new parameter ranges.
"We are now exploring our way towards ever higher energy values," explained Prof. Dr. Thomas Klinger, head of the Stellarator Transport and Dynamics Division at the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP) in Greifswald. "In doing so, we have to proceed step by step so as not to overload and damage the facility."
On 15 February 2023, the researchers reached a new milestone: for the first time, they were able to achieve an energy turnover of 1.3 gigajoules in this device. This was 17 times higher than the best value achieved before the conversion (75 megajoules). The energy turnover results from the coupled heating power multiplied by the duration of the discharge. Only if it is possible to couple large amounts of energy continuously into the plasma and also remove the resulting heat, a power plant operation is possible.
The plasma discharge lasted eight minutes
Particularly heat-resistant divertor baffle plates are used to dissipate the largest heat flows at Wendelstein 7-X. They are part of the inner wall, which is now cooled by a system of 6.8 kilometers of water pipes since the completion of the device. No other fusion facility in the world currently has such a comprehensively cooled inner wall.
The plasma heating consists of three components: the newly installed ion heating, the heating by neutral particle injection and electron microwave heating. For the current record, the electron microwave heating system was particularly important because it delivers large amounts of power over periods of several minutes.
The energy turnover of 1.3 gigajoule was achieved with an average heating power of 2.7 megawatts, whereby the discharge lasted 480 seconds. This is also a new record for Wendelstein 7-X and one of the best values worldwide. Before the completion works, Wendelstein 7-X achieved maximum plasma times of 100 seconds at much lower heating power.
Within a few years, the plan is to increase the energy turnover at Wendelstein 7-X to 18 gigajoules, with the plasma then being kept stable for half an hour.
Credit: Max Planck Society 8min
Background to nuclear fusion
The goal of fusion research is to develop a climate and environmentally friendly power plant. Similar to the sun, it is to generate energy from the fusion of atomic nuclei. The Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics is pursuing the path of magnetic fusion. Because the fusion fire only ignites at temperatures above 100 million degrees, the fuel—a thin hydrogen plasma—must not come into contact with cold vessel walls.
Held by magnetic fields, it floats almost contact-free inside a vacuum chamber. The magnetic cage of Wendelstein 7-X is created by a ring of 50 superconducting magnetic coils. It is a stellarator-type facility in which the special shapes of the coils are the result of sophisticated optimization calculations. With the help of these coils, the quality of plasma confinement in a stellarator should reach the level of competing tokamak-type facilities.
A traveller at the Montreal airport. Swissport, a company that provides ground handling services at the airport was not awarded a contract and will stop operating there in the summer of 2023. (Ivanoh Demers/CBC/Radio-Canada)
Two unions are criticizing a "contract flip" at Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport, which, they say, will result in hundreds of unionized workers losing their jobs and could cause widespread chaos at the airport.
Earlier this month, Aéroports de Montréal (ADM), the authority that oversees the Montreal airport, said a committee made up of airline representatives selected three companies to perform ground handling services at the airport.
Ground handling includes customer service, loading and unloading customer baggage, freight and cargo and refuelling planes, among other important services.
The committee selected two new companies: Menzies Aviation and Samsic Assistance, which do not currently provide ground handling services at the airport. It renewed the contract of TSAS, a subsidiary of Avjet.
Swissport, which currently does ground handling at the Montreal airport, was not selected.
Two unions, Unifor and the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, IAMAW, condemned the decision to award the licences to two new companies, saying the end of the Swissport contract will lead to the loss of unionized jobs.
Swissport CEO Charles Roberge said in an interview the contract loss at the Montreal airport would lead to 195 jobs being cut.
Peter Tsoukalas, the general chairperson of IAMAW District 140, said neither Menzies nor Samsic employs unionized workers. CBC has requested a comment from the two companies but has not yet heard back.
Unifor said in a statement that the move will leave up to 150 Unifor members without jobs by the end of June.
Tsoukalas said 175 of IAMAW's unionized members were notified their jobs will cease as of June 1.
Many of them, Tsoukalas said, may have to reapply with the new ground handling companies to get work, where they are likely to have lower wages and lose benefits and seniority they previously had as part of the union.
Timing could lead to summer vacation travel problems
The contract flip, as Tsoulakas referred to the move, coming into effect in late spring or early summer is also likely to contribute to problems because the airport is already dealing with staffing shortages, he said.
The contract changes drew the attention of opposition politicians in Ottawa.
"Montreal Airport's lack of respect for these unionized workers is disgusting and unacceptable. We all need to work for workers' rights and better working conditions," said Alexandre Boulerice, the NDP Labour Critic, in a joint media release with the IAMAW.
Bloc Québécois MP Louise Chabot also condemned the contract changes.
"The Bloc Québécois strongly denounces this practice, which denies the basic rights of workers," she said in the same media release.
ADM said in a statement the decision was made to "optimize operational performance, improve operational safety and environmental performance of ground handlers."
"The issuance of ground handling licences will help better manage ground handling at YUL, which plays a significant role in the quality of services offered to passengers," the airport authority said in its statement.
The newly chosen companies can start operating as of April 1. Current ground handlers who have not been selected, like Swissport, can operate until June 30, ADM said, "or even ask for an extension up to the end of the transition period, on Oct. 28, 2023."
But John Gradek, a lecturer at McGill University and academic co-ordinator of the university's supply chain, logistics, operations and aviation management program, said he was worried April 1, 2023 will be too soon a start date for a new company to take over the complex work of ground handling at the Montreal airport.
"Both [new] companies are experienced when it comes to ground handling contracts. I'm not criticizing the company, I'm just concerned," he said.
"They're going to have to hire people. They're going to have to make sure that people are trained and that they get the experience that's needed to efficiently handle the operations that are going to be thrown at them."
Peak travel season begins in mid-may, Gradek said, which leaves the new contractors little time to prepare for the rush.
Last summer, Gradek said a similar lack of experience led to delays at airports across the country.
"I don't think Montrealers want to go through the same level of anxiety this coming summer as we did last summer," he said.
ADM said the contract change affects ground handling services for airlines that do not have their own ground handlers. Air Canada, Delta, American Airlines and Air Creebec are not affected because they have their own ground service contractors and Air Transat was already operating with TSAS.
"All in all, these compagnies represent more than 80 per cent of YUL air services," an ADM spokesperson said.
Amazon union leader flies in to help UK strikers ‘kick down the door’
Chris Smalls, who set up the retailer’s first union in New York, came to Coventry to back its workers in their pay dispute
The leader of Amazon’s first union has made his first trip outside the United States to support striking workers at the online retail giant’s Coventry warehouse.
Chris Smalls, who helped coordinate a successful unionisation drive at an Amazon warehouse in Staten Island, New York, in April 2022, travelled to the UK last week to provide advice to British workers as they try to gain recognition from the company.
“It’s important that we amplify each other’s fight and struggles because we want to build that international solidarity,” Smalls told the Observer. “Just like they’re refusing to talk to these workers and negotiate a fair contract, we’re in the same process back at home.”
Smalls’s trip has been in the making for a month, with the 34-year-old specifically registering for a passport in order to make his first journey. “I booked my flight the same week I got my passport,” he said. “As soon as I got that letter that I’m free to leave, I made sure this trip was a priority.”
“For Chris to say the first thing he wanted to do was come out here has got me,” said Darren Westwood, one of the Amazon workers picketing the Coventry facility. “It blows my mind.”
The dispute is the first official organised strike of Amazon workers in the UK. Previous actions in Tilbury, Essex which saw staff gather in the warehouse canteen to protest at pay and conditions, were wildcat strikes.
The Coventry strikers, who account for around one-fifth of the 2,000 staff at the site, are seeking a 43% increase in pay to £15 an hour. Amazon pays an hourly wage of between £10.50 and £11.45, depending on location. The national living wage is £10.42 an hour for those over the age of 23.
“They’re getting paid £10, minimum wage, for the same time of work we’re doing back in the States, and we’re getting paid twice as much,” said Smalls. “It doesn’t make any sense. Because of the cost of living, even us making twice as much, we are still living cheque to cheque.”
An Amazon spokesperson said “a tiny proportion of our workforce is involved” in the strikes. “In fact, only a fraction of 1% of our UK employees voted in the ballot – and that includes those who voted against action.” The spokesperson added: “We appreciate the great work our teams do throughout the year and we’re proud to offer competitive pay.” Amazon also claims to offer “comprehensive benefits that are worth thousands more” to staff.
Amazon’s US union got a higher wage for its workers by continuing to press the company to improve its offer – something Smalls believes can be done by UK workers.skip past newsletter promotion
UK Amazon workers stage a strike in Coventry in January.
Photograph: Henry Nicholls/Reuter
“What the union does is say: ‘Well, yes, we got breadcrumbs, but imagine what we can get if we have a contract,’” he said. Smalls said that in the US, unionised Amazon workers are now fighting to get $30 an hour. “We’re doubling that up, because we know Amazon has the money.”
Smalls spoke with striking workers on the picket line last week as part of the visit, and exchanged advice on how to organise and work for recognition by the e-commerce giant. It does, however, take time. “This is just the start. Every marathon you have to take that first step,” said Westwood.
Smalls said that the striking Amazon workers will make Coventry “the stronghold and the catalyst for the UK”.
He added: “I promise you that when they win, there’s going to be warehouses all over this country that are going to do the same thing We’ve got to get one crack in the door, then we’ve got to kick the door down and let everybody in.”
Smalls suggests Coventry – and the UK – will just be the start of his Amazon unionisation drive, with potential future visits to similar movements in Europe. “They messed up,” he said. “They let me out. I’m going everywhere I need to be.”
OECD THE ROLE OF PENSION FUNDS IN FINANCING GREEN GROWTH INITIATIVES
Abstract: It is estimated that transitioning to a low-carbon, and climate resilient economy, and more broadly „greening growth‟ over the next 20 years to 2030 will require significant investment and consequently private sources of capital on a much larger scale than previously. With their USD 28 trillion in assets, pension funds - along with other institutional investors - potentially have an important role to play in financing such green growth initiatives.
Green projects - particularly sustainable energy sources and clean technology - include multiple technologies, at different stages of maturity, and require different types of financing vehicle. Most pension funds are more interested in lower risk investments which provide a steady, inflation adjusted income stream - with green bonds consequently gaining interest as an asset class, particularly - though not only - with the SRI universe of institutional investors.
Yet, despite the interest in these instruments, pension funds‟ asset allocation to such green investments remains low. This is partly due to a lack of environmental policy support, but other barriers to investment include a lack of appropriate investment vehicles and market liquidity, scale issues, regulatory disincentives and lack of knowledge, track record and expertise among pension funds about these investments and their associated risks. To tap into this source of capital, governments have a role to play in ensuring that attractive opportunities and instruments are available to pension funds and institutional investors.
This paper examines some of the initiatives that are currently under way around the world to assist and encourage pension funds to help finance green growth projects. It is drafted with a view to inform current OECD work on engaging the private sector in financing green growth. Different financing mechanisms are outlined, and suggestions made as to what role governments in general, and pension fund regulatory and supervisory authorities in particular, can play in supporting pension funds investment in this sector. The paper concludes with the following policy recommendations: provide supportive environmental policy backdrop; create right investment vehicles and foster liquid markets; support investment in green infrastructure; remove investment barriers; provide education and guidance to investors; improve pension fund governance.
Researchers find several oceanic bottom circulation collapses in the past 4.7 million years
Nodules on the seafloor at the study site, photographed by an underwater camera. Credit: Yao Huiqiang
Antarctic bottom water (AABW) covers more than two-thirds of the global ocean bottom, and its formation has recently decreased. However, its long-term variability has not been well understood.
Researchers led by Prof. Deng Chenglong from the Institute of Geology and Geophysics (IGG) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and their collaborators have reconstructed AABW history back to approximately 4.7 million years ago (mya). They found that AABW has collapsed several times and such collapses might have induced moisture transport to fuel the Northern Hemisphere glaciation (NHG).
This work was published in Science Advances on Feb. 24.
The study was based on a 36-mm-diameter Fe-Mn nodule from the Eastern Pacific, located 5,050 m below sea level. The nodule was collected by Guangzhou Marine Geological Survey, China Geological Survey.
Magnetic scanning was an important factor in providing precise dating results. "This is a key, though the final dating was obtained by an integration with 10Be/9Be, flux of metal Co, and astronomical tuning," said Dr. Yi Liang from Tongji University, first author of the study and a postdoc at IGG/CAS.
"Since AABW is the main provider of oxygen in the ocean bottom region, we used various scientific methods to identify the relation between metal accumulation in the Fe-Mn nodule and oceanic redox conditions," said Prof. Deng. "Ni, Mn, and Cu contents are used to indicate AABW changes."
AABW record from the Eastern Pacific and major AABW, NADW, and NHG events. Credit: Deng Chenglong’s group
These results show that seawater oxygen has experienced a linear increase in the Eastern Pacific since around 3.4 mya. This trend agrees with the observation of the Antarctic Ice Sheet (AIS), suggesting a covariation between them.
Comparing the AABW record with other geological records from the past million years, the researchers found a glacial enhancement of oceanic bottom circulation. This observation implies that atmospheric CO2 may have been regularly stored in the deep ocean when Earth's climate was cold, e.g., during past glacial periods.
The comparisons clearly highlighted seven intervals of poor seawater oxygen, suggesting AABW influence was reduced to a much lower level. These periods are known as AABW collapse and accompanied an enhancement of North Atlantic Deepwater (NADW) as well as key stages of NHG history, such as when NHG became intensified or amplified.
Investigated Fe-Mn nodule and its age model. Credit: Deng Chenglong’s group
Although we don't know what will happen in response to ongoing AIS melting and AABW slowing, AABW collapse might have pulled the Earth into a harsher glacial climate several times in the past.
Paul Sudlow, vice-president of projects at Recover Energy Services Inc., holds up a jar of recycled oil, extracted from drilling waste. (Liam Harrap/CBC)
Out of the thousands of oil facilities that dot Brazeau County, one stands out from the rest.
Instead of producing, compressing or pumping fuel, Recover Energy Services Inc. recycles oil from drilling waste.
The company's facility is located just outside Lodgepole, about 170 kilometres southwest of Edmonton.
"I'm pretty proud of what our team has accomplished here," CEO Stan Ross said.
When a new oil well gets drilled, sometimes thousands of metres deep, companies use a drilling fluid, such as an oil-based mud. This is to help lubricate the drill and carry chunks of rock and ground out of its way.
It's all in the mud
This isn't the kind of mud typically found in a farmer's field. It's a mixture of oil, brine, emulsifiers, wetting agents, clay, lime and other chemicals.
"It's kind of like being a bartender," Reg Patterson, president of Barron Base Oil Corporation, said. The company produces oil-based mud.
"You can't drill a well without some type of fluid," he said.
In most cases, drilling waste — which resembles wet concrete — is mixed with sawdust, which can double the amount. The waste is then sent to a class II landfill, taking years to break down.
Stan Ross is the CEO of Recover Energy Services Inc. (Liam Harrap/CBC)
In 2021, there were just under 1,800 new oil wells in Alberta, according to the Alberta Energy Regulator. Each new well can produce 17 trucks of waste or about 500 metric tons, Ross said.
Recover Energy takes drilling waste and extracts a base oil from it, since November 2021. Manufacturers, such as Barron Base Oil Corporation, use this base oil to make more mud to help drill for more oil.
"There's not an unlimited supply of base oils," Patterson said. "So having a locally produced product from Alberta is definitely beneficial to everyone,"
After extraction, Recover Energy. dries out what remains and sends it to the landfill as it still has some contaminants, like residual chlorides.
However, it's still a much lower amount being sent to the dump overall, Ross said.
Recover Energy in Brazeau County takes drilling waste, also known as mud, and extracts oil. In just over a year, the company has accepted about 200 loads of waste and produced more than 40,000 barrels of base oil. (Liam Harrap/CBC)
In theory, with more refining, the base oil could be turned into diesel fuel, Ross said.
To get the base oil, Recover Energy, uses a solvent called hexane, a compound typically used to extract vegetable oils, such as canola.
The company also recovers the hexane and reuses it.
Reducing GHG emissions
Within a year, Recover Energy has accepted about 200 loads of waste and produced more than 40,000 barrels of base oil. By doing so, Ross said, the company has avoided up to 68,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions due to less waste being sent to the landfill.
That's equal to taking approximately 14,000 cars off the road for a year, according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency.
"It's phenomenal," said Gurpreet Lail, CEO for Enserva, the national trade association that represents energy services and supply companies.
This new technology, she said, could be a game changer.
"There's tons of innovations taking place right now."
While there are other technologies, such as thermal, that process drill waste, said Ross, none are as environmental as Recover Energy.
"Our carbon footprint is extremely low for what we're accomplishing."
Recover Energy has identified more than 20 other locations it could expand to throughout North America.
Additionally, the company takes the drill waste for free, making its profit from selling the base oil.
Backhoe piles dried out drilling waste, after oil from it has been extracted. From here, the dried out mud goes to the dump. (Liam Harrap/CBC)
Going green
In 2021, Brazeau County launched the Western Economic Corridor initiative to diversify its economy.
While the area has approximately 10,000 oil and gas facilities, it's trying to attract cleaner technology.
"One man's waste might be another man's gold," said county reeve Bart Guyon. "We're finding that other businesses are taking a look to see how can we help green the barrel of oil."
Part of that attraction is reducing costs.
Recover Energy is a oil waste recycling facility near Lodgepole, about 170 kilometres south west of Edmonton. (Liam Harrap/CBC)
Since 2015, the county has reduced taxes by 30 per cent. If residents and businesses pay by the end of June, they qualify for an additional 30 per cent municipal tax cut.
"People run to pay their taxes here," said Guyon.
Other green projects in the country include a floating wetland to help break down sewage and a company trying to find easier ways to send crude oil through pipelines.
"Oil and gas are not going anywhere, but the combustion engine obviously is," Brian Jean, minister of jobs, economy and northern development, said during a county facility tour held in mid-February.
"We are an energy superpower here in Alberta and we have to make sure we are at the forefront of all technologies necessary to go to the next step."
Russia urges Bangladeshto resist sanctions pressure
22 February 2023
Bangladesh's ambassador in Moscow was summoned to the Russian Foreign Ministry after "several dozen" Russian vessels were banned from calling at ports in Bangladesh, including at least one ship carrying equipment for the Rooppur nuclear power plant under construction.
The steam generator was installed in Rooppur unit 2 in October (Image: Rosatom)
The Russian Foreign Ministry's Maria Zakharova told a media briefing earlier this month that "as a specific example, we can mention the incident with the Russian ship Ursa Major, which in December 2022, at the request of the Americans, the authorities of Bangladesh withdrew their previously issued permission to enter the port of Mongla. Because of this, the delivery of a batch of equipment for the Rooppur NPP under construction was delayed for more than a month, which in no way meets the interests of the Bangladeshi side itself".
In a press briefing on Tuesday, following news that the ambassador had been summoned, Zakharova accused the USA of "increasingly forcing neutral countries to comply with anti-Russian sanctions".
"We have learned that several dozen Russian vessels have been banned from calling at ports in Bangladesh. We know that this unfriendly step was taken by the country's authorities not at all on their own initiative but under the threat of secondary sanctions by the United States ... it risks making the future of traditionally friendly Russia-Bangladesh relations contingent on the whims of a third country pursuing its own geopolitical goals.
"We expect the leadership of Bangladesh to find the strength to assert its national interests more resolutely. It is undoubtedly in their interest to develop a mutually beneficial partnership with Russia, which has come to the country's aid more than once in different periods of its history."
Russia's Tass news agency says that 69 Russian ships have been barred from the country's ports, although it said the Russian embassy in Bangladesh had confirmed there was no block on the import of Russian goods themselves, just the specific vessels.
Tass reported last week that the embassy had told it that work on Rooppur "is running according to plan, with all necessary equipment being supplied" with three ships carrying cargo for the facility arriving at the port of Mongla in Bangladesh. Tass also reported that Rosatom said that an alternative route for the delivery of cargo to the Rooppur NPP worksite had been found and was being utilised at the moment. On Thursday 23 February the Dhaka Tribune reported that power plant machinery (weighing a total of 1690 tonnes) from Russia for Rooppur had arrived, via an Indian port, at Mongla that morning on a Bangladesh-flagged ship.
Bangladesh Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen was quoted by RTV News in Dhaka last month as saying "we don't want to accept ships which are under sanctions. We have developed good relations with the US" adding that it had been a surprise that Russia had sent a sanctioned vessel and he said he hoped that Russia would send non-sanctioned ships instead. The USA - and various other countries - have imposed a range of sanctions on Russia following its military action in Ukraine, which began in February 2022.
Rosatom in February 2011 signed an agreement for two reactors to be built at Rooppur for the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission. The initial contract for the project, worth USD12.65 billion, was signed in December 2015. The Rooppur plant, 160 kilometres from the capital Dhaka, will feature two Russian VVER-1200 reactors. Last October the project director Shaukat Akbar was quoted by the Dhaka Tribune as saying they were hoping to meet the target of starting production of the first unit on a trial basis by the end of 2023 and "be fully ready to supply in 2024".
Researched and written by World Nuclear News
Reprieved Illinois plants to be uprated
22 February 2023
US utility Constellation has announced it will invest USD800 million in new equipment to increase the output of its Braidwood and Byron nuclear power plants in Illinois by some 135 MWe. They were among the Illinois nuclear plants saved from premature retirement by passage of the state Climate and Equitable Jobs Act in 2021.
The Braidwood (left) and Byron (right) plants (Image: Constellation)
The Braidwood and Byron projects involve replacing the main turbines at the two facilities with state-of-the-art, high efficiency units. The work on the uprates will be carried out in stages during scheduled refueling outages. Constellation expects to see increased output at the plants as early as 2026, with the full uprated output available by 2029.
Constellation said the additional 135 MWe of clean power output is "enough to power the equivalent of 100,000 average homes around the clock every year" and "the equivalent of removing 171,000 gas-powered vehicles from the road per year, or the equivalent of adding 216 intermittent wind turbines to the grid, using Environmental Protection Agency data".
The company said the project is expected "to create work for thousands of skilled union workers during construction while expanding economic activity for surrounding businesses in the plant communities. The additional jobs come on top of the 1200 permanent workers at the two plants".
"These investments in our world class nuclear fleet will allow us to generate more zero-carbon energy with the same amount of fuel and land, and that's a win for the economy, the environment and Illinois families and businesses who rely on our clean energy," said Constellation President and CEO Joe Dominguez. "These projects will help create family-sustaining jobs and are a direct result of state and federal policies that recognise the incredible value of nuclear energy in addressing the climate crisis while keeping our grid secure and reliable."
Since the passage of Illinois' Climate and Equitable Jobs Act in 2021, Congress passed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) last year, which provides a base level of support for nuclear energy nationwide. Both pieces of legislation have enabled renewed investment in nuclear energy, Constellation said.
"Support for nuclear in the IRA has made extending the lives of US nuclear assets to 80 years more likely assuming continued support," it said. "It has caused Constellation to examine nuclear uprate opportunities that were cancelled a decade ago due to market forces. The 45Y tax credit for the production of new carbon-free electricity helps make these investments economic".
Byron's pressurised water reactors (PWRs) began commercial operation in 1985 and 1987, and are currently licensed by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission to operate until 2044 and 2046, respectively. Braidwood's two PWRs entered commercial operation in July and October 1988, respectively. Unit 1 is licensed until 2046, and unit 2 until 2047.
Last October, Constellation announced it is seeking to extend the operating licences of its Clinton and Dresden nuclear power plants, also in Illinois, by an additional 20 years. If approved by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission, this would enable Clinton's single boiling water reactor (BWR) to continue operating until 2047 and Dresden's two BWRs until 2049 (unit 2) and 2051 (unit 3).
The steam generator was installed in Rooppur unit 2 in October (Image: Rosatom).jpg?ext=.jpg)
The Braidwood (left) and Byron (right) plants (Image: Constellation)