Climate change is an often heard argument for the once called nuclear "renaissance". However, if one looks closer, there was something fishy about the industry using climate change protection as its most prominent feature... » Read more
More then thirty years of debate, and the controversy remains as polarised as ever. This website (to be fair - whose maintainer is anti-nuclear) collects news about nuclear power in Europe, sorted by nuclear power plant, type of power plant, country etc.
By presenting different (media) angles on current nuclear issues, we hope to be able to cut out some spin, either pro or against, and to allow the reader to make up his or her own mind about today's pro's and con's of nuclear power.
In the menu on the right you can select your country, the nuclear power plant in your neighbourhood, or your favourite company and read latest (most English) news about it.
Latest nuclear news
German parties agree nuclear extension-officials
Thursday, October 15, 2009BERLIN, Oct 15 (Reuters) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives have agreed with the Free Democrats (FDP) on extending the life of nuclear plants deemed safe but the timing is unclear, FDP and conservative politicians said on Thursday.
"You can say that," the FDP's Gudrun Kopp told Reuters, when asked about agreement on an extension. She is a member of a working group that is discussing economic and energy issues. A conservative member of the working group confirmed the agreement.
Problems Plague Launch of 'Safer' Next-Generation Reactors
Thursday, October 15, 2009The executives of electric utilities worldwide are dreaming of a renaissance in nuclear power. But problems with a new, state-of-the-art reactor in Finland suggest that this is unlikely to happen. The industry's alternative strategy is to modernize older plants to drastically extend reactor lifetimes.
The managers at Finnish electric utility TVO expressed one last wish before ordering what would be the world's largest nuclear power plant from Siemens and the French nuclear power conglomerate Areva. They wanted the reactor to be painted oxblood red and white, the traditional colors of the picturesque summer homes on Finland's western coast.
Hypothesis: Cernavodă reactors poison us with tritium
Monday, October 12, 2009The contradictory declarations made over time by the management of the National Company Nuclearelectrica and the Autonomous Administration for Nuclear Activities make us believe that something is rotten with the nuclear reactors in Cernavodă: either the emanated tritium concentration is much higher than it should be, thus jeopardizing the environment, or we already have a large surplus of heavy water, in which case it is not justified to continue production until 2017...
Belgium may extend lifetimes of nuke plants
Friday, October 2, 2009BRUSSELS, Oct 2 (Reuters) - Belgium may extend the lifetimes of its three oldest nuclear power stations by ten years to 2025 to guard against energy shortages, newspaper De Standaard reported on Friday.
The plants, two in Doel near the northern city of Antwerp and one in Tihange in southeastern Belgium, are due to close in 2015.
But Energy Minister Paul Magnette will submit a report to the government on Friday that concludes Belgium will face energy supply problems if the plants close on schedule, De Standaard said.
Italy's ENEL may join Russia nuclear power plant
Thursday, October 1, 2009MOSCOW, Oct 1 (Reuters) - Italy's power firm Enel is interested in joining a project to build a nuclear power station in Russia's region of Kaliningrad, the project leader Inter RAO said on Thursday. Inter RAO's Chief Executive Yevgeny Dod told reporters his company was also talking to other potential foreign partners.
Nuclear reactor 3 stops after fire at EDF's Paluel
Monday, September 28, 2009PARIS, Sept 25 (Reuters) - EDF has turned off the 1,300-megawatt Paluel power reactor 3 after fire broke out in the machine room in the non-nuclear part of the plant, it said on Friday.
The fire was put out and there were no casualties, it said.
Spain nuclear watchdog to inspect Cofrentes plant
Monday, September 28, 2009MADRID, Sept 24 (Reuters) - Spain's nuclear regulator said on Thursday it will inspect the 1,000 megawatt Iberdrola-owned Cofrentes nuclear power station after part of a fuel rod was dropped during refuelling work.
The Nuclear Safety Council (CSN) added in a statement that it had given the event on Tuesday a preliminary rating of 1 on the International Nuclear Events Scale (INES), but that workers, the general population and environment were not at risk.
Sellafield panic was just an exercise!
Monday, September 28, 2009The authorities, it appears, prioritise telling people what measures they should be taking, without feeling the need to properly explain why.
A local woman talks of seeing smoke or steam rising from areas on the site where she has not seen such an occurrence before.
Spain's 1,000 MW Vandellos II nuclear plant halted
Monday, September 28, 2009MADRID, Sept 24 (Reuters) - Spain's 1,000 megawatt Vandellos II nuclear power station halted off schedule early on Thursday after operators detected a hot spot in the main transformer, a statement from the CSN nuclear watchdog said.
The fault was detected at 0000 GMT and plant was disconnected from the grid to allow for repairs.
"It won't happen overnight. It'll take several days," a spokeswoman said at the plant, which is near the northeastern port of Tarragona.
Spanish nuclear plant appeals 2013 closure
Friday, September 18, 2009MADRID, Sept 15 (Reuters) - Spain's oldest nuclear power station filed an appeal on Monday against a government decision to close the 500-megawatt plant in 2013, operators Nuclenor said on their website.
"Nuclenor considers that there are solid reasons to support the continued operation of the Santa Maria de Garona plant until 2019," a statement on the Nuclenor site said.