Experts Say Earthquakes Shouldn't Hinder Chile Nuclear Power
‘SANTIAGO (Dow Jones)--Despite a devastating 8.8-magnitude earthquake that rocked Chile's central-southern regions, experts believe a nuclear power plant could be safely built and operated in the country. On Feb. 27, one of the strongest earthquakes on record and an ensuing tsunami wave rocked the Andean nation, snapping bridges, toppling buildings and claiming hundreds of lives throughout the Maule and Bio Bio regions. In the wake of the disaster, neither of Chile's two test nuclear reactors, located in the Santiago Metropolitan region, suffered damage or operational errors, according to the Energy Ministry. Chile's government is studying the possibility of using nuclear power as it seeks to diversify its sources of electricity, as it's been vulnerable in the recent past. A few years ago, Argentina cut off natural gas supplies, forcing Chile to import more expensive fuels, while droughts have reduced hydroelectric production. President-elect Sebastian Pinera, who takes office Thursday, will continue those studies but isn't likely to decide on the construction of a nuclear power plant, Ricardo Raineri, incoming Energy Minister, previously told Dow Jones Newswires.’

Vietnam attends int'l conference on nuclear power
‘A Vietnamese delegation led by Minister of Science and Technology Hoang Van Phong attended the International Conference on Access to Civil Nuclear Energy in Paris on March 8-9. Initiated by France and jointly held by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development's Nuclear Energy Agency (OECD/NEA), the conference aimed to encourage the responsible use of nuclear power for peaceful purposes. It took place as part of the lead up to the Global Summit on Nuclear Safety scheduled for April 12-13 in Washington, D.C. On the sidelines of the conference, the Vietnamese delegation had several bilateral meetings with the Japanese delegation and French partners such as Electricity of France (EDF) and the Atomic Energy Commission (CEA). Minister Phong spoke highly of cooperation and assistance from countries, including Japan and France, as well as international nuclear organisations such as IAEA and NEA.’

CEZ Meets With Participants In Nuclear Power Tender
‘PRAGUE (Dow Jones)--Czech power company CEZ AS Wednesday said it has held a joint meeting to open negotiations with all three participants in its nuclear generation expansion tender. France's Areva SA, Westinghouse Electric Co. LLC, owned by Japan's Toshiba Corp., and Russia's Atomstroyexport are in CEZ's tender to build five nuclear reactors in Europe and possibly in Turkey. "The goal of this meeting was to open negotiations prior to bid submission with the aim of identifying and specifying one or several suitable solutions to meet the needs and requirements of CEZ," company spokesman Ladislav Kriz said in a statement. CEZ hasn't yet stipulated the size or scope it seeks in future nuclear power stations, and is giving the participants the opportunity to sell their vision. Negotiations ahead of bid submission should last through the end of this year, and the candidates will be requested to submit bids in 2011, he said. CEZ will name the winner and sign contracts in the first half of 2012, Kriz said.’

Report: Canada should push for nuclear-free Arctic
‘OTTAWA - Calling for the creation of a nuclear-weapons-free zone in the Arctic is not alarmist, says an academic report, as foreign ministers of the world's Arctic nations prepare for a summit in Canada later this month. While the threat of nuclear-weapon use in the Arctic may be nebulous now, the ground should be prepared for potential future confrontations over competing claims for sovereignty, power and resources in the region, say co-authors Michael Wallace and Steven Staples. They also say the move would be a prudent step to safeguard the Arctic environment against nuclear accidents. "By acting now we can probably save ourselves a lot of angst down the road," Staples said in an interview Tuesday. "As countries try to stake their claims in the Arctic and on the resources, let's do this in a blueprint way - in a coordinated way - and avoid a mad scramble that could lead to an accident." Wallace, a professor emeritus at the University of British Columbia, and Steven Staples, president of the Ottawa-based Rideau Institute, are executive members of the Canadian Pugwash Group - a think-tank dedicated to the prevention and resolution of armed conflict.’

Egypt nuclear file still dogged by uncertainty
‘Paris--The future of Egypt's sought-after nuclear program remained unclear at the recent International Conference on Access to Civil Nuclear Energy in Paris, despite an earlier meeting between Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif and the president of AREVA, a French producer of nuclear reactors. On the sidelines of the Paris conference, Minister of Electricity and Energy Hassan Younis held a series of meetings with delegations from the US, France, Russia, China and South Korea to discuss Egypt's nuclear project. However, the minister did not discuss the project's details with officials of the French company. Younis' talks focused on two points, the first being how the Egyptian specialists expected to run Egypt's first nuclear reactor would be trained. According to Younis, Egyptian specialists would receive training in those countries with whose representatives he held talks. The second point discussed was related to the safe operation of nuclear reactors in general and recent accomplishments in the fields of nuclear maintenance and safety. Construction of Egypt's nuclear reactor by French contractors, however, is expected to be costly. French reactors are generally known to have the best safety records in the world, diplomatic sources told Al-Masry Al-Youm. While the French company is trying to reduce projected construction costs, costs nevertheless remain higher than those associated with South Korean offers, said sources speaking on condition of anonymity.’

Battle to revise Russia radioactive waste bill continues as enviro groups are shut out of the dialogue
‘NEW YORK - Powerful environmental groups in Russia have stepped forward to say they have been shut out of a process to revise a new bill on radioactive waste management in Russia, saying their suggestions to improve the bill have been ignored, representatives of Greenpece Russia and Ecodefence told Bellona Web Tuesday. There is no set date for the second reading of the controversial bill - and three readings are required for it to be adopted as law - but the environmental community has all but been cut out of the process of adding necessary improvements to make it safe, Russian environmental groups said Tuesday, said Vladimir Slivyak, co-chairman of Ecodefence. At issue is a new law on dealing with radioactive waste in Russia that was passed in January by Russia's lower house of Parliament, the Duma, in its first reading. Environmentalists, while acknowledging that there are precious few laws regulating the handling of radioactive waste in Russia, say the new law could give the nuclear industry nearly unchecked license to carry on with unsafe waste disposal practices.’