Nuclear new build for Iran, China, Argentina
The Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) has made an agreement with Rosatom to build at least two more nuclear reactors at Bushehr, near the head of the Persian Gulf, reports World Nuclear News. The reactors, each planned at 1 GW, are to be located near to two desalination plants. The reactor agreements are part of a 1992 deal on nuclear cooperation between the two countries under which the first unit at Bushehr was built.
Meanwhile in China, a second unit at the Hongyanhe plant within the Liaoning province in the north-east of the country has entered commercial operation after being grid-connected in November. Two further CPR-1000 units at the site are scheduled to begin operating in the next two years, writes World Nuclear News.
Elsewhere, in Argentina, a small reactor has begun construction next to Atucha, around 100 km north-west of Buenos Aries. The 27 MW CAREM25 plant has been planned since 2006 and is based on a reactor design from the 1980s. It is being constructed by the state-owned INVAP.
And, in Finland, a consortium of industrial and energy companies have committed to build a new nuclear plant in the north of the country. The Finish government has given permission to build the Hanhikivi nuclear power plant and the consortium, Fennovoima, consisting of 44 local shareholders, wants to build the plant by 2024. It has stated that the cost for shareholders will be less than €50/MWh (5 eurocents/kWh), which includes production depreciation, finance and waste management costs.
Finally, on last month’s third anniversary of the Japanese tsunami and associated Fukushima incident, Christoph Frei, Secretary General of the World Energy Council, had this to say: ‘In our study on nuclear energy in March 2012, we found that Fukushima had had limited impact on the global nuclear outlook and this was particularly so for non-OECD countries. But two years on, the situation has evolved. The market attractiveness of nuclear energy has now been undermined by the availability of cheap natural gas, collapsing solar prices, uncertainty of carbon prices, along with nuclear energy’s rising safety-related costs. This will have significant consequences for our ability to deliver a diverse fuel mix for a secure, affordable and environmentally sustainable energy future.’
News Item details
Journal title: Energy World
Keywords: nuclear reactor
Countries: Argentina - China - Iran -
Organisation: World Energy Council (WEC)
Subjects: Electricity from nuclear fuel, Desalination, Nuclear reactors
