Europe

Un superministère «vert»

Thursday, October 25, 2007

CHRISTOPHE SCHOUNE

mercredi 24 octobre 2007, 13:15
136 jours sans gouvernement. Un accord est quasi ficelé sur le développement durable. Le nucléaire prolongé, l'Orange bleue s'engagerait ensuite dans un plan alternatif aux énergies fossiles.

Cela semble acquis : la possible coalition Orange bleue optera pour un superministère du Développement durable. Regroupant les matières énergétiques, environnementales et de transports, ce ministère vert serait la pierre angulaire des politiques de lutte contre le réchauffement climatique.

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NSG member Germany is not enthusiastic about nuke deal

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

24 Oct, 2007, 0242 hrs IST, TNN

NEW DELHI: The US hope that the Indo-US civilian nuclear deal will be carried forward is not mirrored on the international stage. The issue is not likely to feature in any major way during the high profile visit of German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s visit to India from October 29 to November 1. It is understood that under the present situation, Germany, which will soon chair the Nuclear Suppliers Group, sees no point in formulating a position towards India’s civilian nuclear aspiration.

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Seven of UK's 19 reactors closed

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Nearly a third of Britain's nuclear power reactors have been out of action due to breakdowns and maintenance. Of the UK's 19 reactors, a total of seven have been shut down.

British Energy, which operates the affected sites, said a "conservative decision" had been taken to close units after safety checks uncovered faults.

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Labour's plan to abandon renewable energy targets

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Leaked documents detail strategy for climate change U-turn

John Vidal, 23. 10.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2007/oct/23/renewableenergy.energy

Ministers are planning a U-turn on Britain's pledges to combat climate change that "effectively abolishes" its targets to rapidly expand the use of renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power.

Leaked documents seen by the Guardian show that Gordon Brown will be advised today that the target Tony Blair signed up to this year for 20% of all European energy to come from renewable sources by 2020 is expensive and faces "severe practical difficulties".

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Enel Slovak Unit Closes Biggest-Ever Slovak Corp Finance Deal

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

PRAGUE - (Dow Jones)- Slovakia's leading electricity company Slovenske Elektrarne, 66%-owned by Italy's Enel SPA, said on its Web site Tuesday it closed a EUR 800 million financing deal with a consortium of banks, the largest corporate financing deal in Slovakia to date.

Slovenske Elektrarne concluded a revolving credit line for seven years to finance its investments, which will reach 110 billion koruna ($4.65 billion) by 2013, the company said.

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Nuclear woes hit British Energy

Monday, October 22, 2007

Shares in British Energy closed down 8% after problems uncovered by a routine inspection forced it to take four nuclear reactors out of service.

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Bulgaria Doubles State Guarantees for Belene Nuke Construction

Monday, October 22, 2007

18 October 2007, Thursday

PM Stanishev (left) and Finance Minister Oresharski (right) have both backed the project to the hilt so far, and Bulgaria's low foreign debt allows the cabinet to underwrite the loans.

Bulgaria's cabinet decided on Monday to double the amount of debt it is willing to guarantee for the construction of the country's second nuclear power plant at Belene.

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Nuclear causes ripples in new member states

Monday, October 22, 2007

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Nuclear causes ripples in new member states
ENDS Europe DAILY 2412, 19/10/07
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The Czech Green party has threatened to bring down the coalition
government in which it is a junior partner if members of the majority
ODS party support amendments to an energy law that would shift
ultimate power over decisions on possible new nuclear plants from the
government to the parliament.

The Greens said this week that any support from government MEPs for
changes tabled by the opposition for a vote next week would be
tantamount to breaking a coal

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Bidders down to final pair for nuclear sell-off

Sunday, October 21, 2007

AN Italian and a British company are the last in the running to buy Project Services, BNFL’s specialist nuclear-decommission-ing division.

Italy’s Finmeccanica and Britain’s VT Group will this week submit their final bids.

BNFL, a state-owned nuclear agency, is being broken up. Over the past 18 months it has sold Westinghouse, the power-station builder, and Reactor Sites Management, which operates nuclear plants in Britain.

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Belarus to hold tender in 2008 to build nuclear power plant

Friday, October 19, 2007

MINSK, October 19 (RIA Novosti) - Belarus will hold a tender next year for a project to build its first nuclear power plant, at which Russian and Western partners are expected to bid, the prime minister said on Friday.

The Belarusian leadership has said the country needs the plant to ensure national energy security amid rising hydrocarbon prices. Russia doubled its gas price for Belarus at the start of the year, after over a decade of heavily discounted prices. The new plant is expected to provide 15% of the country's power consumption.

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