Some other stories from the nuclear industry you may have missed:

Economist: Flamanville - Belly of the beast
Normandy, was cancelled at the last moment. The organisers gave two contradictory reasons: one was that a group of VIPs had taken precedence, the other was that the site had to be closed suddenly for two days. Naturally, I assumed the worst-that something dreadful had happened up there on the French coast. A bit paranoid, perhaps, but even two decades on from Chernobyl it is hard to forget the dark side of nuclear power

Reuters: Finland nuclear reactor costs headed to arbitration -TVO
Franco-German consortium Areva-Siemens is to take TVO to arbitration in a dispute over delays and cost overruns at the Olkiluoto 3 reactor, the Finnish nuclear plant operator said on Wednesday. In October, TVO was told by the consortium that the 1,600 MW reactor -- the first to be constructed in Western Europe for more than a decade -- would be further delayed to 2012 from its initial start-up target of 2009. TVO
claimed for compensation from the plant supplier consortium for losses and costs incurred due to the delay.

Business Journal: Nader magazine ranks Constellation in 'worst' top 10
A magazine ranked Constellation Energy Group as one of the top 10 worst corporations in 2008 for its push to build the nation's first nuclear reactor in 30 years. Multinational Monitor, a bimonthly nonprofit magazine on global issues founded by consumer activist Ralph Nader, included the Baltimore energy giant in its annual ranking. "Although it is too dangerous, too expensive and too centralized to make sense as an energy source, nuclear power won't go away, thanks to equipment makers and utilities that find ways
to make the public pay and pay," the publication stated regarding Constellation's pitch for a new nuclear reactor at Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant in Southern Maryland.

Rutland Herald: Vermont Yankee: No new power deal for utilities
The owners of Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant have decided not to offer a new power contract to the state's utilities, saying the current one is sufficient. Regulators and legislators were awaiting the details of the agreement between the utilities and Entergy Corp. as they prepare to make a decision about whether the plant should be allowed to continue operating when its license expires in 2012. In a letter to the Vermont Public Service Board, Entergy Corp. said the utilities already have a good deal if the plant's license is extended another 20 years and shouldn't expect more.

Hindustan Times: Private firms have to wait to enter India N-power biz
Leading private power producers like Tata Power, Reliance Infrastructure and GVK will have to wait for at least seven to eight years before they are allowed to enter the nuclear power generation business. These companies had announced plans to set up nuclear power projects after the India-US civil nuclear deal was signed on September 6, 2008. Jairam Ramesh, minister of state for power, told Hindustan Times that the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) and the ministry of power have decided to push for partnerships within the public sector to develop nuclear power projects in India. As a result, a major chunk of the targeted nuclear power capacity by 2020 - 24,000 MW - is now expected to come through the public sector route.

Donga: North Korea Urges Nuke Dialogue With Obama Government
North Korea yesterday stepped up its criticism of the South Korean government and urged the South Korean people to launch anti-government struggles in a joint newspaper editorial. The North, however, conveyed its willingness to engage in nuclear disarmament talks with the incoming U.S. administration and expressed hope for improved relations with the United States.

Times: Gaza rockets put Israel's nuclear plant in battle zone
There were growing fears in Israel last night that Hamas missiles could threaten its top-secret nuclear facility at Dimona. Rocket attacks from Gaza have forced Israelis to flee in ever greater numbers and military chiefs have been shaken by the size and sophistication of the militant group's arsenal. In Beersheba, until a few days ago a sleepy desert town in southern Israel, there is little sign of the 186,000 inhabitants. Schools are closed and the streets of shuttered shops echo with the howl of sirens warning of incoming rockets.