New Nuclear Race in USA

Here's a slide I'll be discussing in my next episode. It outlines a simplified version of the nuclear plant licensing and construction process in the USA, along with time estimates for each major step. I've also included a summary of the financial incentives contained in the new Energy Bill, and a current status of compaies who are talking about new construction.

Hope you join us on the show!

This Week in Nuclear - Episode 4 - January 15, 2006

PodCast Episode 4

Show Notes from this week's show:

• The Problem with Iran
• Lithuania wants to keep their RBMK reactor running longer
• Harry Reid and John Ensign, and their nutty "Take Title" Bill
• Hillary singles out Indian Point for political gain
• Seabrook gets a license extension
• Vermont Yankee 20% power up-rate passes important milestone
• An overview of the Canadian nuclear industry
• Growing support for new nuclear plants in UK
• Ukraine talks of enriching their own fuel
• Borselle gets a license extension
• More opinions on why governments are reluctant to support nuclear energy

The Aljazeera News Story on Iran

I tried to fit in some discussion of the incentives contained in the US Energy Bill, but I ran out of time. We'll cover thant next week!

Here's some "recommended reading" (on the right side of the page).

Rod's Blog

This Week in Nuclear - Episode 3 - January 8, 2006

PodCast Episode 3

This week we discuss a number of stories including the following:

1. The on-going trouble with Iran and how their claims of peaceful intent simply don't add up.
   
2. Russia's recent curtailment of the natural gas supply in Europe is leading Germany to rethink the phase-out of nuclear power plants.
   
3. Town government initiatives at Seabrook and Pilgrim.
   
4. Finally, we'll summarize the current state of new nuclear plant construction in the United States.

I also added a PayPal "Make a Donation" button on the right side of the page. While there is no cost for this blog, hosting my PodCast at Podomatic is not free. Bandwidth can get expensive, and the more subscribers we get, the more it will cost. Any donations to help offset the costs are greatly appreciated!

Disclaimers and Rules By Which I PodCast

I'm working on Episode 3 of "This Week in Nuclear" and hope to get it out by the end of the day. There are a few things I need to make clear for my PodCast listeners:

1. While I am employed by one of the large U.S. nuclear utilities, my employer is not associated with my Blog or my PodCast.
   
2. I am very careful to ensure that news and facts presented are gathered ONLY from publically available sources. There is no proprietary or "insider" information presented in my PodCast.
   
3. The opinions presented here are my own or those of my guests, listeners, or other participants and are not necessarily the opinions of my employer.

I'm sure you all understand why these are important!

This Week in Nuclear - Episode 2 - January 1, 2006

PodCast Episode 2

Happy New Year! This is going to be a great year for advancing the safe use of nuclear energy around the world!

Stories we discuss today include:

Pakistan begins construction of Chashma-2
Westinghouse gains NRC final certification for the AP1000 reactor plant design,
Duke and Progress Energy are close to announcing where they will build new plants, and
Leguna Verde decides to perform a 20% power uprate.

We'll also discuss public perception of the safety of nuclear power.

Some related links:
http://www.uic.com.au/nip14.htm
http://www.bls.gov/iif/oshwc/osh/os/osnr0023.pdf