Here as promised is Tom Shea’s Notional convention on nuclear power.
Two other nuclear power factoids I heard recently that may interest…
First, the UAE has announced its intention not to acquire enrichment or reprocessing technology as part of its nuclear power programme.
This is significant but the question is: is it a one-off? I suspect it says more about that country’s desire to maintain good relations with the ‘West’ than it does about on-going attempts to prevent the spread of fuel cycle technology.
Second, some of the delays at Finland’s Olkiluoto 3, the EPR that is being built by Siemens and AREVA, have been caused by an inability to pour concrete correctly. Apparently the contractors (AREVA and Siemens) have been letting it fall through too great a height thus compromising its quality. I’ve often heard it said that the French have forgotten how to build reactors in the last 20 years—this is apparently one of the consequences.
hey james, andy here. nice post!! but any chance you can keep this as a draft until tomorrow? jeffrey and my postings are tied to today’s news cycle, and it would be a shame for them to get buried.
Bahrain has recently made a commitment similar to the UAE’s in the context of a bilateral nuclear deal with the United States, supporting your point that this is motivated more by concerns about relations with Washington than about nonproliferation. One wishes that Sarkozy would insist on similar commitments by recipient countries before selling nuclear technology to countries in the region and elsewhere.
US, Bahrain sign MOU pledging to cooperate on nuclear energy
Washington (Platts)—25Mar2008
The US and Bahrain have signed a memorandum of understanding on nuclear
energy, the US Department of State said in a statement Monday.
The MOU gives “tangible expression” to the US’ desire to support
countries that “serve as models for the responsible pursuit of the benefits of
nuclear technology,” the statement said.
State said that Bahrain said in the MOU it would “forgo sensitive fuel
cycle technologies”—a term that covers uranium enrichment and spent-fuel
reprocessing—and rely on existing international markets for nuclear fuel.
The MOU was signed by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Sheik
Khalid, the foreign minister of the Persian Gulf island nation.
This is significant but the question is: is it a one-off? I suspect it says more about that country’s desire to maintain good relations with the ‘West’ than it does about on-going attempts to prevent the spread of fuel cycle technology.
Just curious – has Bahrain been implicated in the past as some sort of partner or go-between for proliferation? What is the root of the skepticism that they would abide by agreements? Or am I just reading something into your words?
Luckily for Finns, our governmental agency (STUK) overseeing the building process is very strict and demanded structural reinforcements to compensate the failed cast. Anyway, there has been over 1000 reported cases of quality problems on Olkiluoto 3 construction.