Here is a great image of the Taishan 1 construction site in China. The construction team is lifting the second ring of the containment liner.

For an update on AREVA’s international EPR™ projects, read more here.

On his Weekly Washington Update, Virginia Representative Rob Wittman discussed his recent visit to the AREVA Newport News facility under development in Newport News Virginia. As part of a joint venture with Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding, AREVA is working to construct a facility that will manufacture the heavy components for nuclear power plants. More information on this project here.

“Last week I also had the opportunity to visit AREVA Newport News, a company that manufactures components for nuclear power plants.  AREVA partnered up with Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding to build a fantastic facility that will create over 250 private sector jobs on the Peninsula.  This is great news not only for the Hampton Roads economy, but also for our energy security. 

Nuclear power is clean and affordable, and it should be an important part of our comprehensive energy policy.  With so many concerns about clean air and greenhouse gas emissions, nuclear power is a safe and reliable carbon emission free source of electric power.  Many countries are rapidly developing their nuclear industries, including China, which is expected to complete 22 nuclear energy reactors this year and has plans for over 100 additional reactors in the near future. The United States, on the other hand, hasn’t ordered a new reactor since 1978.

Currently, about one third of Virginia’s electricity is supplied by nuclear power, and our energy demands are expected to significantly increase in the next few decades.  I believe that in order to meet these challenges, we need a comprehensive energy policy that relies on American-made resources, including nuclear energy, natural gas, oil, coal, and renewable and alternative sources such as wind and solar power.  Nuclear energy is a reliable source of electricity, both environmentally and economically, and I enjoyed the opportunity to visit the folks at AREVA Newport News who are making this power source a reality.”
 
Check out images from the visit.

Here is a great thought on the challenge of choosing energy sources from an article by Kerry A. Lynch, Senior Fellow for American Institute for Economic Research:
 

Nuclear power currently provides about 20 percent of total U.S. electric power. If you advocate “no nukes,” that means finding an alternative source for that 20 percent (or cutting electricity use). The major source for our electric power, however, is coal. So eliminating nuclear power would likely result in burning more coal. If your goal is cleaner energy, this is a poor trade-off. Nuclear energy emits no carbon when it is produced, while coal emits more than any other fossil fuel.

The whole piece “Green Dreams vs. the Energy Dilemma” is worth a read.

AREVA is the industry leader in development and implementation of digital Instrumentation and Controls (I&C) systems for existing nuclear power plants as well as new plants being constructed and licensed. We recognize and appreciate the need for a comprehensive and independent review by the regulator, in each country, where our systems are licensed and deployed. Based on AREVA’s worldwide experience, we are flexible and well-prepared to adapt designs and implement solutions to address particular regulatory concerns.

The press release issued today by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is a normal and expected part of the design certification process, and AREVA already has begun addressing the issues raised in the communication. In fact, these issues already have been widely discussed in the media and are old news. We do not expect this issue to have a significant effect on the development of U.S. EPR technology in the United States.

AREVA has already proactively identified design modifications to address many NRC questions, and is conducting work on a priority basis to implement those changes to facilitate timely NRC review in support of the design certification. Initial NRC feedback is positive regarding these proposed changes.

In a very limited set of areas, AREVA has stated its desire to maintain the design for enhanced safety and reliability, but is evaluating recent NRC feedback to determine what additional information could be provided to address NRC questions.

AREVA continues in its commitment to open and transparent communication with NRC and will keep them apprised of our plans and progress, to support a predictable and timely design certification review.

By Susan Hess

This question was the topic of a lively discussion at the 81st LULAC National convention held in Albuquerque, N.M.  The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) invited AREVA to speak at this important annual event about clean energy, including nuclear and renewables, to help educate their members about the truths and myths of this timely topic. 

Climate change and clean energy have been of growing interest over the past several years because of its direct and indirect impact on the Latino Community, which is now the largest and fastest growing minority population in the United States. For instance, children of Latino families develop asthma at a rate 2.5 times more than other minority and Caucasian children.  


The discussion covered renewable energy options such as offshore wind, biomass and solar power as well as nuclear energy. Understandably, several in the audience did not consider nuclear energy a “clean energy” source. Our discussion centered mostly on facts and fiction about nuclear energy, recycling used nuclear fuel, and how each voter can help to rebuild the nuclear energy industry by contacting their Congressional members and encouraging them to support increased nuclear energy in the United States. 

When the session ended, everyone appreciated the discussion and the new perspectives.  One person remarked, “I thought this was about clean energy.  It was mostly about nuclear energy. If you had said nuclear in the title of the session, I would not have attended, but I did.  I learned a lot and I am glad I came.”
 

We would like to a highlight a thoughtful new blog to join the energy discussion. UniStar Nuclear Energy has recently launched a blog that hits on topics like their activities, accomplishments and the nuclear energy industry.

We should note that UniStar, a joint venture of Constellation and EDF, has selected the U.S. EPR™ technology by AREVA for its new plant projects, the first of which will be Calvert Cliffs 3 in southern Maryland.

AREVA is glad to have another blog helping to shape the discussion of energy.
Check it out.

By Jarret Adams

An editorial in today’s Washington Post urges the government, “Don’t let politics drive a nuclear-waste decision,” a wise bit of advice given the current state of America’s nuclear waste management strategy. It points out the difficulty faced by the Blue Ribbon Commission in making a recommendation on the nation’s nuclear waste management policies when its charter makes it difficult for this panel to do so.

So far, the Obama administration has been vocal about its commitment to alternative energies. In January, it created a commission to rethink the nation’s nuclear policy. But this broad reevaluation rings hollow when it is accompanied by taking off the table the one storage site into which the government has poured $9 billion and more than 20 years of research and planning – without even seeing whether it meets the NRC’s licensing standards.

Whether the government decides to revive the Yucca Mountain project is not the main issue. We will need a repository regardless of the waste management strategy we employ.

However, the editorial falters when it claims that recycling will not reduce the amount used fuel that needs to be stored. In fact, recycling using current technology would divide by at least four the volume of waste that must go to repository. And this waste will be 10 times less toxic than used fuel that has not been recycled. (The Post was correct on this point.)

For more information on the potential for recycling as part of America’s strategy for managing used nuclear fuel, click here.

Olkiluoto 3 Finland

AREVA knows that as the leader we are in a prominent position and we expect to face questions and criticism. This level of scrutiny has not deterred AREVA from communicating on this project. Rather, AREVA has increased the standard for dialogue and level of transparency for nuclear projects. Recognizing the significance of this project, AREVA has made communicating on both our progress and delays a priority.
read more…

By Jarret Adams

About a dozen members of the Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future yesterday toured the Department of Energy’s Hanford site near Richland, Wash. This panel, which is charged with developing a recommendation on managing the nation’s nuclear waste, heard testimony from local government officials and American Indian tribes during the course of its third public meeting.

The message to the panel from the local speakers was that the government must develop a plan for moving waste from the Hanford site now that Yucca Mountain has been “off the table.” Others called for reviewing the decision to stop the Yucca Mountain project.

Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire echoed that sentiment in her testimony today and encouraged the panel “to base any recommendations on science and technology, not politics.”

Whether or not the government restarts the Yucca project, the nation ultimately will need a repository. However, if we recycle our nation’s used nuclear fuel we could divide by at least four the volume of waste bound for repository. We also would avoid the need to develop additional repositories, perhaps indefinitely. For more on the potential for recycling, click here.

AREVA is active in several projects related to the remediation of the Hanford site, employing its state-of-the-art technologies for chemical clean-up and vitrification of the radioactive waste.

In addition, we manufacture high-quality fuel for nuclear plants at our facility in Richland, adjacent to the site.