The construction of Bulgaria's second NPP in Belene (the Danube) turned out to be the apple of discord in the energy giant RWE, reported the German Die Welt. The RWE were short-listed as the NPP strategic investor. The company CEO, Jurgen Grossmann plans the company's participation in the project despite the resistance of RWE Supervisory Board.
Germany
Belene Nuke Stirs Discord in RWE
Thursday, October 23, 2008Two German nuclear plants to run beyond 09 election
Tuesday, October 21, 2008FRANKFURT, Oct 20 (Reuters) - German nuclear power plant operators EnBW and RWE confirmed they will keep two reactors running beyond 2009, when a general election might change nuclear policy.
The two companies on Monday confirmed a weekend media report which said the Neckarwestheim 1 and Biblis A installations will run at least well into 2010, although under the nuclear exit law they should have shut next year.
German's trial over Libya nuke program nears end
Saturday, October 11, 2008STUTTGART, Germany: A German engineer has acknowledged that he helped procure parts for a centrifuge system that authorities say was meant for Libya's now-abandoned nuclear weapons program, a court said Thursday.
Gotthard Lerch went on trial in June, accused of supplying Libya with sensitive technology in the knowledge that the country was seeking atomic weapons. Prosecutors have accused him of playing a key role in the network led by Pakistani scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan.
Dangerous spent fuel returned to US
Wednesday, October 8, 2008WASHINGTON: Germany has returned more than 20 pounds (9 kilograms) of highly enriched uranium fuel to the U.S. for safeguarding from terrorists or potential misuse, the government said Tuesday.
The National Nuclear Security Administration said the spent fuel shipment was transported by ship and rail under secret and secure conditions. Spokeswoman Casey Ruberg said the material was secured at a site in the southern state of South Carolina on Sept. 23.
Power fears as nuclear output cut
Tuesday, October 7, 2008MORE than half of Britain's nuclear power stations are either closed or working at reduced capacity, it emerged yesterday, prompting fears of power shortages next month.
Six of the UK's ten nuclear stations are not operating at full capacity. Three are completely closed, one is operating at half capacity and two have been reduced to 70 per cent because of safety fears.
Pressure on for a nuclear renaissance
Tuesday, September 30, 2008Like other industrial nations, Germany faces a formidable challenge in covering its future energy needs amid rising raw material prices, the threat of climate change and worries about the reliability of oil and gas supplies.
A decision eight years ago to phase out nuclear energy, which provides a quarter of Germany's electricity consumption, is making it especially hard on Europe's largest economy to meet its three goals: lowering its dependence on imported fuel, cutting harmful carbon gas emissions, and maintaining a plentiful power supply at prices industry and households can afford.
German Gundremmingen C reactor shut as planned-RWE
Monday, September 29, 2008FRANKFURT, Sept 29 (Reuters) - The southern German Gundremmingen C nuclear reactor was shut on Sept. 28 as planned, operator RWE's transparency website showed early on Monday, confirming earlier plans.
The 1,344 MW unit is due to be reconnected between Nov. 5 and 7, it also showed.
German ministry approved Unterweser reactor restart
Monday, September 22, 2008FRANKFURT, Sept 22 (Reuters) - E.ON's Unterweser nuclear plant in northern Germany was given the green light for a restart after its annaul maintenance outage, the environment ministry of the state of Lower Saxony said in a statement on Monday.
The ministry oversees nuclear safety in the state.
Wholesale power traders had expected a gradual restart of the 1,344 MW unit from Monday and for the plant to run at half load until the end of October.
Germany Says It Has `Critical' Lack of Nuclear Power Scientists
Friday, September 19, 2008Sept. 19 (Bloomberg) -- Germany, which plans to end its use of nuclear power by 2021, has a ``critical'' lack of qualified nuclear scientists to inspect the 17 German atomic energy plants and maintain its expertise, Environment Minister Sigmar Gabriel said.
Germany must find ways to encourage people to enter the field even with the planned phaseout of nuclear energy, Gabriel said today at a Berlin briefing. The federal environment ministry, which is responsible for nuclear safety, has about 15 employees to oversee inspection for all of Germany, which isn't enough, he said.
Germany's CSU Won't Compromise on Nuclear Power Plans, FTD Says
Wednesday, September 17, 2008Sept. 17 (Bloomberg) -- Germany's Christian Social Union won't compromise on plans to extend the life of nuclear power stations, Guenther Beckstein, prime minister of Bavaria, said in an interview with Financial Times Deutschland.
The party, which is allied with Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats, may form a coalition with the Greens and the Free Democrats following next year's elections, though Beckstein sees the nuclear power plans as non-negotiable, the newspaper said.