We round up the past week’s news and updates from the world of Nuclear.
Rolls-Royce gets funding to develop mini nuclear reactors, from BBC News: “Rolls-Royce has been backed by a consortium of private investors and the UK government to develop small nuclear reactors to generate cleaner energy. The creation of the Rolls-Royce Small Modular Reactor (SMR) business was announced following a £195m cash injection from private firms and a £210m grant from the government.”
Greenwashing or viable solution? Europe has a big decision to make on nuclear power, by CNBC: “The European Union must decide whether nuclear is a clean source of energy, but the decision is tough with countries divided about the right labelling… It is a long-standing dilemma that the European Commission, the executive arm of the EU, must resolve in the coming weeks. The commission is due to publish its sustainable finance taxonomy — rules that will help clarify to investors what the bloc sees as green investments — as an attempt to boost financing in these areas.”
UAE completes construction of Barakah 3, by Nuclear Engineering International: “The Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (Enec) announced on 4 November, on the sidelines of the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow that unit 3 at the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant in the UAE had been completed. The unit has now been handed over for operational readiness activities and is on track to start up and deliver electricity in 2023, joining Barakah 1 (which is fully operational) and unit 2, which is connected to the UAE grid and undergoing testing while raising power levels.”
Why the promise of nuclear fusion is no longer a pipe dream, by Science Focus: “Fusion – combining atomic nuclei to release energy – is a clean and safe way to power our homes and industry. This ‘holy grail’ of energy has eluded physicists for decades, but there are signs that a bright future could be on the horizon.”
Canadian long-term waste storage project completed, by World Nuclear News: “A project to relocate low-level radioactive waste from historic Canadian radium and uranium refining operations to a new, above-ground long-term storage facility has been completed, with the final layers of topsoil and grass placed on the engineered mound, Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL) has announced. The capping and closure of the mound at the Port Granby Project Long-Term Waste Management Facility completes a project begun in 2016.”
