Nuclear Power

Kathy Hochul, the New York governor, opposes Trump's campaign to restart an nuclear power plant just north of New York City, her office said this week. Days after?the?U.S. The energy secretary visited to encourage the plant's reopening. The U.S. is experiencing a surge in power demand for the first decade, thanks to the explosion of AI data centers. To meet this demand, President Donald Trump set the goal that the U.S. quadruple its nuclear power capacity by the year 2050. Ken Lovett is Hochul's senior communications advisor on Energy and Environment. She said that the governor had made it clear...

Ursula Von der Leyen,?EU?chief, said that reducing?Europe's nuclear sector was a'strategic error'. This came as the governments struggled to cope with a severe energy shortage caused by the Iran War. The EU Commission President told a Paris event that Europe used nuclear energy to produce around a third in 1990. That number has now dropped to 15%. This leaves Europe reliant upon oil and gas imports, whose prices have risen in recent weeks. Von der Leyen said that Europe was at a disadvantage compared to other regions because it is "completely dependent on expensive and volatile fossil fuel imports". "This...

Ursula Von der Leyen, President of the EU Commission, said that the decision to reduce nuclear energy's share in the mix of electricity production?in Europe was a strategic error. She said in a speech in Paris at a nuclear energy event that "this reduction in nuclear share was a decision, and I believe it was a mistake for Europe to turn its back on an affordable, reliable source of low-emission power." She said that in 1990, the EU relied on nuclear power for a third of its electricity. Now, it's only about 15%. She added that the European Union wants...

Kim Jung-kwan, South Korea's Industry Minister, said that Seoul was 'in talks' to invest in a nuclear project in the United States. This is part of Seoul’s pledge of investing $350 billion into U.S.-based projects. Seoul is scrambling to review its deals with Washington, after U.S. president Donald 'Trump' threatened to increase tariffs on goods imported to South?Korea by 25%. He blamed a delay of the Asian ally in implementing a trade agreement agreed last year. Kim responded to a question from a member of the parliamentary committee about Korea's potential investments in U.S. nucleopower plants by saying, "We are...

Security sources and witnesses reported that sirens were heard as Katyusha missiles struck the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad. It was not immediately clear if the rockets had caused any casualties or damage. This was the first attack on the embassy in over two years. The last recorded attack?was late 2023 when seven mortar rounds fell in the compound amid a wave attacks by Iran-aligned militas against U.S. assets in Iraq and Syria because Washington supported Israel's war in Gaza against Hamas. Around 9 pm, explosions were heard in the central Baghdad area near the embassy. Witnesses said that sirens sounded...

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced on Wednesday that it has approved the construction of a small nuclear reactor in Wyoming, backed by Bill Gates. TerraPower's 345 megawatt sodium-cooled Kemmerer reactor was approved by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, marking the first commercial reactor approval in almost a decade. The reactor is to be constructed near a coal-fired power plant, and will become operational in the early 2030s. TerraPower announced in a press release that it will begin construction within the next few weeks. The NRC stated that the plant includes a system of energy storage to temporarily boost output up...

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission released a draft regulation Thursday, which will help regulate fusion energy. It is an emerging technology whose?supporters hope it can one day generate electricity without generating long-lasting?radioactive _waste. Since decades, companies and scientists in laboratories around the globe have tried to use large magnets or lasers to promote continuous nuclear fusion reactions. In these reactions, light atoms are forced to combine to release enormous amounts of energy. The leaders of the fusion energy industry met with officials from the U.S. Department of Energy in December last year. Department of Energy officials in December last year...

According to Engie's chief financial officer, the Belgian government wants to increase the capacity of nuclear reactors and extend their lifespan. Engie has previously stated that it is not interested in maintaining its nuclear assets. CFO Pierre-Francois Riolacci discussed Belgium's plans for nuclear power on Thursday, after the company announced its results and a major purchase in Britain. He also said that the company did not agree with a draft report from the Belgian regulator regarding future costs associated with the nuclear fleet. Engie CEO Catherine MacGregor stated that a final report on costs associated with the dismantling of older...

Vistra Corp, a power producer, beat Wall Street's expectations on Thursday for its fourth-quarter core profit?adjusted? as an?AI driven surge in electricity consumption from data centers?fueled earnings. The U.S. is expected to?increase its power consumption?increase?increasingly this year and next year, due to the rapid expansion in data centers for artificial-intelligence services and cryptocurrency and the switch from gas and oil heating and transportation. The big?tech companies are also looking for long-term contracts with electricity suppliers to power AI-driven services and data centres. Meta Platforms has signed a 20-year contract to purchase power from Vistra's three nuclear plants located in the...

Eagle Nuclear Energy shares rose 14.6% on Wednesday afternoon after it began trading on the Nasdaq. This was following the merger of the blank-check firm, Spring Valley Acquisition Corp II. This listing comes at a time when nuclear energy is gaining traction in the U.S. after decades of stagnation. The surge in electricity demand for power-hungry centers has been a major factor. Eagle Nuclear's flagship Aurora project is one of the U.S.'s largest undeveloped uranium reserves, located along the border between Oregon and Nevada. Mark Mukhija, CEO of the project, said that there are no 'offtake agreements' yet, but it...

Eagle Nuclear Energy, a company that explores for uranium, will start?trading in Nasdaq tomorrow, after its?merger? with Spring Valley Acquisition Corp?II, a blank-check firm. The listing on Nasdaq is a sign that 'nuclear energy' in the U.S. is gaining traction, after decades of stagnation. This has been fueled by the surge in electricity demand for power-hungry data centres. Eagle Nuclear's flagship Aurora project is located along the border of Oregon and Nevada, one of the biggest undeveloped uranium reserves in the United States. Mark Mukhija, the CEO of the project, said that it does not yet have offtake agreements. However,...

Constellation Energy, a major U.S. energy company, beat Wall Street estimates for its fourth-quarter adjusted profits on Tuesday. The rise in electricity demand from data centers helped to send shares up by 4% during morning trading. The Energy Information Administration stated in its short-term energy outlook last month that the U.S. is expecting to increase power consumption through 2027, after having set a record for a second consecutive year in 2025. The rapid construction of AI and crypto data centers, as well as the shift by households and businesses to electric heating and transport, are driving much of the demand....

Alexei Likhachev, the head of Rosatom's nuclear division, said that the company will remain in Iran despite the conflict in the Middle East. It is also committed to the agreement to build two more units at the Bushehr nuclear power plant. After the United States and Israel attacked Iran on February 28, Rosatom evacuated its staff, and suspended construction on the new units. Likhachev stated that around 450 Rosatom employees remain on the site after 150 returned via Armenia to Russia this week. "The construction and completion of the?second and?third units remain among the priorities for the?corporation. This is not...

The head of Russia's nuclear energy corporation announced on Thursday that repair crews had restored the external line of the Russian-controlled?Zaporizhzhia nucleopower plant in southeast Ukraine, nearly a month after the facility was shut down. In a public statement, Alexei Likhachev, the director general of Rosatom said that repairs were completed on the Ferosplavna-1 power line, which connects the plant with the grid, late Thursday afternoon. He said that the repair work was completed "one day earlier than scheduled" at Europe's biggest nuclear plant with its six reactors. The plant was taken over by Russia shortly after the invasion of...

Russia accused the United States of Israel on Thursday of 'trying to drag the?Arab nations into a wider -Middle East conflict' by prodding Iran to strike targets in the region. It said that Washington and Tel Aviv were not showing any signs they would relent. Since the United States and Israel launched the 'air strikes' on Iran, Saturday, the 'Iranian missile and drone attacks have targeted Arab states in the Gulf. Some of these also have close ties to Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by phone on Monday to the leaders of four Arab Gulf States, offering to use...

Alexei Likhachev, the chief of Rosatom, said that the U.S. and Israeli air attack on Iran has halted the construction of new 'units' of Iran's nuclear 'power plant' in the 'port city' of Bushehr. Likhachev warned earlier of the danger posed by'strikes near Iranian nucleus facilities. He said that explosions were heard 'just a few kilometres from the facility, even though the facility was not being targeted. He told journalists that the work has stopped on the sites of the second &?third units. He said that it was difficult to predict what would happen next, due to the military operations...

The regional governor reported that?about 50,000 people in the Russian city Belgorod were without electricity on Friday morning after Ukrainian missiles had struck the city overnight. Governor?Vyacheslav?Gladkov stated that about half of the affected people should be connected by Friday's end following the latest attack in a long series of attacks which have led to repeated blackouts. Belgorod is located about 40 km from the Ukrainian border. In the four years that Russia invaded its neighbor, it has been the target of many Ukrainian missile and drone strikes. Gladkov posted on Telegram that "serious damage" had occurred to the energy...

A local ceasefire was declared near the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in southeast Ukraine on Friday, to allow repairs of an external power line. The plant is the largest in Europe. Under Russian Control Since shortly after the beginning of the war, in 2022. The plant does not produce electricity and relies on outside power to maintain its nuclear material cool in order to avoid a catastrophic incident. Russia and Ukraine accuse each other frequently of putting the safety of the plant at risk by staging attacks near it. Last year, a similar 'local truce' was established when the power...

The companies confirmed that Rosatom, the Russian state nuclear power company, has released Siemens Energy from its contract to?help build Paks II in Hungary. This confirms an earlier report on the news website Politico. Rosatom informed?that it had terminated the contract with the firm?at the?end of 2025 because its?inability? to meet its contractual obligations. Siemens Energy stated that there were no sanctions in place at the time of termination, and that it fulfilled its contractual obligations in compliance with all national and international laws. It said that "at the time when the fulfillment would have made sense, the customer had...

Denys Shmyhal, Minister of Energy in Ukraine, said that senior Ukrainian officials agreed on Wednesday to increase air defence capabilities around the capital Kyiv. This is to counter any possible future Russian air attacks against energy infrastructure. The 'fresh' preparations follow the attacks in Kyiv, where officials are scrambling to repair damages to heating and electricity networks that has left thousands of people in darkness and cold. "Most information will not be made public." In the context of?potential further Russian attacks?, we discussed strengthening Kyiv?s active air defense, especially for?energy facilities?, Shmyhal wrote after a military staff meeting on Telegram....

The head of Ukraine's nuclear power company said that the largest nuclear plant in Europe, which was seized by Russian forces during the initial days of the invasion of Ukraine, could only be restarted safely if the facility is returned to Ukrainian control. Since Russian forces seized the area, the six reactors of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant were shut down. Moscow announced in 2013 that it aimed to restart one reactor. The plant's Russian appointed boss stated it could start producing energy as early as 2027. Pavlo Kovtoniuk is the head of Ukrainian nuclear company Energoatom. He said that...

Hungarian Foreign Ministry Peter 'Szijjarto' said that the first concrete pour at Hungary’s Russian-built nuclear plant Paks 2 was on Thursday. This officially made it a.nuclear facility under construction. Rosatom, the Russian state-owned nuclear energy company, will build two new reactors under an agreement signed in 2014 between Budapest and Moscow. Hungary wants to expand Paks by adding two Russian VVER reactors. Each VVER has a capacity of 1.2 gigawatts. The 12.5 billion Euro project, which was awarded to Rosatom without a tender, is often cited as proof of the warm relationship between Russian President Vladimir Putin and?Hungarian Premier Viktor...

The?government announced on Thursday that Vietnam's PM Pham Minh Chinh wanted talks with Russia about building a nuclear plant to be completed?this month. He also urged officials to seek out new?partners, after Japan pulled its support from a second project. Vietnam restarted its nuclear energy programme in 2017 after it was suspended in 2016. Hanoi has negotiated agreements with Russia and Japan for the construction of two power plants, each with a combined capacity between 4 and 6.4 gigawatts. The aim is to sign the agreements with Russia in September and the agreement with Japan by the end last year....

Volodymyr Zelenskiy, president of Ukraine, said that the U.S.-Ukrainian negotiators would revisit the most problematic issues in the peace talks to end Russia’s war, including the question of the fate of the nuclear power plant occupied by the Russians. Kyiv faces 'U.S. Kyiv is under?U.S. The delegations have gathered in Paris to discuss peace and security assurances for Ukraine, in the event of a ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia. Russia has not been supportive of the U.S.-backed initiative. Zelenskiy announced on X that a third meeting with the U.S. delegation would take place in just two days. He said that...