Latest News

Filters

Filter by tags: International Atomic Energy Agency International Energy Agency Clear all tag filters

70 news articles found

Even oil-rich companies of Middle East are eying reactors, as more nations announce plans for SMRs Russian troops occupied the Zaporizhzhia nuclear station, which was damaged by shelling. File photo courtesy IAEA. 2022 was a year of mega milestones for nuclear energy.

Countries around the world turned to nuclear as a reliable low-carbon energy source as they looked for ways to wean themselves off Russian imports and lower carbon emissions.

New plants began operating, deals for small modular reactors were signed and countries announced ambitious plans for new-build.

On the political front, US president Joe Biden signed into law new legislation that will help to finance struggling nuclear reactors and could save dozens from being shut down early. In Europe, the nuclear industry celebrated when members of the European parliament decided to “follow the science” and support legislation which includes nuclear in the bloc’s sustainable finance taxonomy for green investment.

Source: Nucnet
Date: Tuesday, 10 January 2023
Original article: nucnet.org/news/five-major-developments-that-are-setting-the-stage-for-2023-and-beyond-1-1-2023

Opening the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA’s) Atoms4Climate pavilion at United Nations climate change conference, COP27, in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said nuclear science and technology are part of the solution to both mitigating greenhouse gas emissions and adapting to climate change impacts.  

Source: NEI Magazine
Date: Tuesday, 15 November 2022
Original article: neimagazine.com/news/newsgrossi-active-at-cop27-10350059

Global optimism ‘rising’ about potential of reactors to help achieve net zero emissions Fatih Birol (left) and Rafael Grossi at the International Atomic Energy Agency discussion on nuclear power at Cop27 in Egypt. Courtesy IAEA. Nuclear power is making “a strong comeback”, but the international financial community has so far “failed” to provide the level playing field needed for nuclear to help the world tackle its most pressing challenges, from climate change to sustainable development, International Energy Agency (IEA) executive director Fatih Birol told the Cop27 United Nations climate conference in in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt.

Birol told an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) discussion on nuclear power: “I don’t give them a passing grade.”

“Countries that were saying goodbye to nuclear power, they are rethinking their plans,” Birol said, adding that the IEA had been engaged in talks with both Belgium and Germany.

“We are very happy that both governments are now in the process of postponing their nuclear phaseout plans, understanding the role that nuclear plays in addressing this energy security challenge,” he said.

In addition, another group of countries is now considering extending the lifetime of their existing nuclear power reactors to respond to this challenge, which is one of the cheapest forms of low carbon power, Birol said. Still another group of countries are rolling out plans to build new reactors, including seemingly “surprising” ones such as the Netherlands and Poland as well as Japan and South Korea.

Source: Nucnet
Date: Friday, 11 November 2022
Original article: nucnet.org/news/nuclear-making-strong-comeback-but-financial-community-has-failed-to-provide-level-playing-field-11-4-2022

IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi and US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm closed the IAEA International Ministerial Conference on Nuclear Power in the 21st Century which ended in Washington DC on 28 October. Grossi made a global appeal to advance the benefits nuclear energy in face of a pessimistic new report on climate change and the ongoing energy crisis.

Source: NEI Magazine
Date: Tuesday, 01 November 2022
Original article: neimagazine.com/news/newsiaea-international-ministerial-conference-concludes-in-washington-10133127

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi called on world leaders to deliver on commitments made during a ministerial conference on nuclear power hosted by the agency and the US Department of Energy.

Source: World Nuclear News
Date: Tuesday, 01 November 2022
Original article: world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Global-appeal-for-nuclear-power-as-ministerial-con

World Nuclear Association Director General Sama Bilbao y León and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi say nuclear can, and will, rise to the energy challenge, in their addresses to World Nuclear Symposium 2022. Here are the transcripts.

Source: World Nuclear News
Date: Saturday, 10 September 2022
Original article: world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Viewpoint-Bilbao-y-Leon-and-Grossi-on-nuclear-s-op

Prime minister has called for restart of more reactors The Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear power station in Japan before the March 2011 accident. In a first for Japan since the Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear accident in 2011, public support for a nuclear restart is now at more than 60%, said a former executive director of the International Energy Agency.

CNBC reported that Nobuo Tanaka attributed that to the possibility of “serious problems by the end of this year” if Japan does not have nuclear power.

He added that Japan wants to secure energy supplies but also work toward reaching carbon neutrality by 2050, and striking that balance could prove increasingly challenging.

“Japanese public support is more than 60%, and it was the first time ever that support of nuclear power is starting to come over 50% after the Fukushima accident,” Mr Tanaka said. Mr Tanaka, now the chair of the Innovation for Cool Earth Forum, was speaking at the 2022 Global Supertrends Conference.

There have been reservations among the Japanese public over the use of nuclear energy, particularly when it comes to the issue of safety, but Mr Tanaka said the future of nuclear power is now safer, and stressed the importance of minimising risk and maintaining “peaceful use”.

Source: Nucnet
Date: Saturday, 20 August 2022
Original article: nucnet.org/news/public-support-for-nuclear-at-highest-level-since-before-fukushima-8-5-2022

Agency warns of project delays and cost overruns Nuclear Power and Secure Energy Transitions report says nuclear will need government support to play larger role in the future energy system. Logo courtesy IEA. Nuclear power is building ‘momentum’ in many countries as soaring fuel and energy prices are pushing governments to reduce reliance on imported fossil fuels and boost energy security, a new report by the International Energy Agency (IEA) found.

The report “Nuclear Power and Secure Energy Transitions” said nuclear can help reduce CO2 emissions and allow energy systems to integrate higher shares of intermittent solar and wind power. Building these “clean energy systems” will be harder without nuclear power, the report said.

“In today’s context of the global energy crisis, skyrocketing fossil fuel prices, energy security challenges and ambitious climate commitments, I believe nuclear power has a unique opportunity to stage a comeback,” said IEA director Fatih Birol.

Source: Nucnet
Date: Friday, 01 July 2022
Original article: nucnet.org/news/nuclear-energy-set-for-comeback-but-more-policy-support-needed-says-report-6-4-2022

Ruling cites ‘earthquake and tsunami risk’ The three-unit Tomari nuclear power station in northern Japan. Courtesy Mugu-shisai/Wikipedia. A Japanese court has ruled in favour of an anti-nuclear citizens group in Hokkaido, northern Japan, saying that the three-unit Tomari nuclear power station cannot operate.

The Sapporo District Court said in a ruling that the facility, owned and operated by Hokkaido Electric Power Company, is not safe to operate due to the earthquake and tsunami risk.

A separate request to permanently decommission the plant was rejected by the court, according to court documents. The Tomari facility has been fully offline since 2012.

The ruling comes amid calls by some Japanese politicians to quickly restart its fleet of shuttered nuclear reactors, as the nation faces a power supply crunch this summer and the upcoming winter. The country shut down all of its nuclear power plants following the 2011 Fukushima disaster, and only a handful have restarted under new safety rules.

Source: Nucnet
Date: Thursday, 02 June 2022
Original article: nucnet.org/news/court-rules-against-restart-of-three-reactors-at-tomari-nuclear-station-6-3-2022

‘We will address vulnerability of our own energy self-sufficiency’ Japan’s prime minister Fumio Kishida spoke to an audience in the City of London. Courtesy PM’s Office of Japan. Japan’s prime minister Fumio Kishida has backed the restart of reactors that were shut down following the 2011 Fukushima disaster, saying Tokyo will use nuclear power to help reduce its own and other countries’ dependence on Russian energy.

Mr Kishida, facing elections in July and rising energy prices that are squeezing voters’ budgets, said nuclear would be part of the country’s future energy policy.

He told an audience in London’s financial district that Japan would address the “vulnerability of our own energy self-sufficiency” by broadening where it buys energy from, promoting renewables and using nuclear power to diversify its sources of generation.

“We will utilise nuclear reactors with safety assurances to contribute to worldwide reduction of dependence on Russian energy,” he said.

Source: Nucnet
Date: Tuesday, 10 May 2022
Original article: nucnet.org/news/pm-backs-reactor-restarts-in-bid-to-reduce-dependence-on-russian-imports-5-1-2022

Load more news