NEA News

Version française

2011 Volume 29, No. 2

Editorial - Luis E. Echávarri, NEA Director-General

Facts and opinions

Carbon pricing and the competitiveness of nuclear power
A recent NEA study entitled Carbon Pricing, Power Markets and the Competitiveness of Nuclear Energy assesses the competitiveness of nuclear power against coal- and gas-fired power generation in liberalised electricity markets with either CO₂ trading or carbon taxes. It uses daily price data for electricity, gas, coal and carbon from 2005 to 2010, which encompasses the first years of the European Emissions Trading System (EU ETS), the world's foremost carbon trading framework. The study shows that even with modest carbon pricing, competition for new investment in electricity markets will take place between nuclear energy and gas-fired power generation, with coal-fired power struggling to be profitable. The data and analyses contained in the study provide a robust framework for assessing cost and investment issues in liberalised electricity markets with carbon pricing, even in the post-Fukushima context.

Fukushima: liability and compensation
On 11 March 2011, Japan endured one of the worst natural disasters in its history when a massive earthquake struck the Pacific coast of the country and was followed by a tsunami which led to considerable loss of lives. It also led to a major accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Soon afterwards, the operator of the plant, Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), assumed responsibility and liability for the nuclear accident. On 28 April 2011, TEPCO established a dedicated contact line to provide consulting services for financial compensation related to the damage caused.

NEA updates

NEA international peer reviews of post-accident protection policy

MDEP: producing results in a challenging time for nuclear power

Load-following with nuclear power plants

News briefs

International survey of government decisions and recommendations following Fukushima

NEA nuclear law education programmes

NEA joint projects

New publications

Catalogue of new NEA publications

2011 Volume 29, No. 1

Editorial - Luis E. Echávarri, NEA Director-General

Facts and opinions

Fukushima
On 11 March 2011, a magnitude 9.0 earthquake hit the eastern coast of Japan. This caused the three operating units (units 1 to 3) at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant to automatically shut down as designed and also resulted in the loss of off-site power. Units 4 to 6 were already shut down for maintenance outages, with unit 4 having been defueled in November 2010. The emergency equipment began operating with the emergency diesel generators as the power supply.

Policy actions necessary to ensure the security of supply of medical radioisotopes
On 28 April, the OECD/NEA Steering Committee for Nuclear Energy adopted a statement calling on governments and industry to work together to implement fundamental changes in the molybdenum-99 supply chain to ensure long-term reliability of supply. It formally endorsed a policy approach to restructure aspects of the market that are currently functioning unsustainably and to promote an internationally consistent approach to ensure the long-term, secure supply of medical radioisotopes. Disruptions in the global supply chain over the past two years have had significant impacts on patients who have had important diagnostic tests cancelled or delayed.

Regulatory oversight of licensee use of contractors
Contractors have long formed an integral part of the resources available to licensees, particularly in relation to the design, construction, maintenance and modification of nuclear power plants. Indeed, contractors can be regarded as part of the licensee's team, bringing specialist skills and expertise, and additional manpower to particular tasks.

Reversibility and retrievability in radioactive waste management
Reversibility and retrievability (R&R) are concepts that have been considered for many years in radioactive waste disposal. Interest in R&R in geological disposal of high-level radioactive waste and spent fuel disposal has been increasing steadily since the late 1970s. In 2008, the NEA Radioactive Waste Management Committee, an international group of high-level experts with regulatory, industrial, R&D and policy backgrounds, concluded that: "… it is important to clarify the meaning and role of reversibility and retrievability for each country, and that provision of reversibility and retrievability must not jeopardise long-term safety."

NEA updates

Stakeholder involvement in nuclear emergency management

Public involvement in siting nuclear facilities

Current status and economics of small nuclear reactors

International structure for decommissioning costing

Statistical methods for the verification of databases

New publications

Catalogue of new NEA publications

2010 Volume 28, No. 2

Editorial - Luis E. Echávarri, NEA Director-General

Facts and opinions

Security of energy supply and the contribution of nuclear energy
The continuous availability and affordability of energy and, in particular, electricity has become an indispensable condition for the working of modern society. This is especially true for advanced industrial or post-industrial societies, where electricity provides the services essential for production, communication and exchange. Unsurprisingly, governments of OECD countries are thus concerned with understanding the factors influencing the security of energy and electricity supplies and seek to develop policy frameworks and strategies to enhance them.

Regulatory issues for new nuclear build and new entrants
Many countries are showing growing interest in using nuclear power to meet increased energy demands, even in the current economic environment. Some 70 countries are discussing nuclear power as a potential part of their national energy policies. The level of interest in these countries does, however, vary. Of these countries, only a handful will make the commitment to license, construct and operate their first nuclear power plant before 2020. These “new entrants” are in addition to those countries that already have established nuclear power programmes and are increasing their nuclear capacity.

NEA updates

Transition from thermal to fast neutron nuclear systems

Explaining the shortage of medical radioisotopes

New nuclear build and evolving radiological protection challenges

The Forum on Stakeholder Confidence celebrates a decade of work

Decontamination and dismantling of radioactive concrete structures

News briefs

The Blue Ribbon Commission and siting radioactive waste disposal facilities

NEA joint projects

New publications

Catalogue of new NEA publications