Go-ahead for vital £300m Dounreay stores
 

With a combined value in excess of £300 million and a capacity for almost 200,000 cubic metres of waste, they will be the largest facilities ever built in Scotland for managing radioactive waste.

Dounreay Site Restoration Ltd (DSRL) said the new stores are for low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste from the site closure programme.

Solid and liquid intermediate-level radioactive waste will be processed in a new treatment plant known as D3900, where it will be mixed with cement and set inside drums and crates. Once set, the containers will be moved to an adjoining storage area.

The Scottish Government’s policy on nuclear waste is that it should be stored near-site and near-surface.

Gordon Banks MP: Getting the right energy mix
 

Energy security, along with climate change and the fight against terrorism would be at the top of any list of top political issues in the world today.

We must have energy that is affordable, secure and sustainable and to do this we need to encourage investment in a diverse range of low carbon energy sources nuclear, renewables and cleaner fossil fuels.

Oil and gas will still remain an important contributor to our energy mix in the UK for years to come but it is only right that we have the debate in Scotland, and the wider UK, about our future energy requirements.

In some political circles, nuclear is seen as a dirty word and I will be the first to admit that I was once a sceptic of nuclear power. However when faced with a situation where 'the lights may go off', I think we need to re-open the debate about whether nuclear power can play a part in out wider energy strategy.

To remove nuclear from the mix altogether, as the Scottish Nationalist Party proposes, would seriously threaten the UK's ability to deal with the threat of climate change as well as causing untold damage to our economy. The economic damage would be devastating and Scotland would lose the investment (in the region of £3bn) that comes with each reactor.

'Safety fears' at nuclear sub base
 

The country's main nuclear submarine base has been hit by a series of safety breaches, including leaks of radioactive waste, it is reported.

In a confidential report released under the Freedom of Information Act, the Ministry of Defence described safety failings at Faslane, on the Gare Loch near Glasgow, as a "recurring theme".

The worst breaches include three leaks of radioactive coolant from nuclear submarines in 2004, 2007 and 2008 into the Firth of Clyde.

Last year a radioactive waste plant manager was replaced when it emerged he had no qualifications in radioactive waste management.

The documents, which were released to Channel 4 News, showed the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) warned it would consider closing the base if it had the power to do so.

Civil radioactive safety regulations do not apply to MoD sites but the department has previously said it would volunteer to uphold them at the base.

The documents also suggested Faslane will be the UK's only nuclear submarine base by 2015, with three submarines currently based at Devonport in Plymouth transferred to Scotland.

An MoD spokesman said: "The discharges into the Gare loch had no environmental consequences. The MoD is a responsible nuclear operator and informed the appropriate regulatory authorities.

"We commissioned an independent study into the facilities and practices at HM Naval Base Clyde and an improvement plan is currently under way to ensure modern standards and best practice at the base."

Potential sites for UK nuclear power stations revealed
 

Nine of the locations have previously been home to nuclear reactors – including Dungeness in Kent and Sizewell in Suffolk – while two others are close to the former Sellafield reactor site in Cumbria.

The sites have been nominated by companies interested in building the stations and have been initially approved by the government.  The list of potential locations is: Dungeness in Kent; Sizewell in Suffolk; Hartlepool in Cleveland; Heysham in Lancashire; Sellafield in Cumbria; Braystones in Cumbria; Kirksanton in Cumbria; Wylfa Peninsula in Anglesey; Oldbury in Gloucestershire; Hinkley Point in Somerset and Bradwell in Essex.

The proposals form part of the government's plan to build a new generation of nuclear power stations to help close what has been described as a "generation gap", which is expected as existing nuclear and coal-fired stations shut down.

Members of the public are now being asked for their views during a month-long consultation period.  The energy and climate change secretary, Ed Miliband, said: "This is another important step towards a new generation of nuclear power stations.

"I want to listen to what people have to say about these nominations and I encourage people to log on to our website, read the information and let us have their comments. Nuclear power is part of the low-carbon future for Britain.

"It also has the potential to offer thousands of jobs to the UK and multi-million pound opportunities to British businesses."

The sites have been nominated by the energy giants EDF, E.ON and RWE, and by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA), which owns some nuclear sites.

Industry News: UK Opinion Swinging Towards Nuclear
 

The survey of 1100 people, carried out on behalf of Utility Week magazine and management consulting company Accenture in April 2008, found that support for nuclear in the UK has increased by 30% over the last five years. Some 88% of the respondents agreed it is important that the UK reduce its reliance on power generated from fossil fuels, with 33% wanting to do this by increasing use of nuclear power. While 85% of respondents would like to see the UK increase the use of renewables, only 25% thought that renewables alone could fill the gap in reducing the country's reliance on fossil-fuelled generated power.

The survey also found that over half of the respondents felt generally that the UK should increase its nuclear generating capacity. Attitudes were most positive amongst those already living near nuclear power plants. (Nuclear power plant employees were excluded from the survey.)

When asked who they would most trust most to deliver safe new nuclear power plants,
61% said they would trust UK-led consortia, while 7% opted for nuclear consortia with foreign leadership. 31% said they trusted no-one.

Centrica makes nuclear power play for British Energy
 

The company has been in talks since last September, when it agreed in principle to buy a holding in the nuclear generation group.

British Energy was bought by France's EDF for £12.5billion. Centrica said it would pay £3.1billion to buy one-quarter of the UK group.

Negotiations became bogged down because of the fall of energy prices since the outline agreement was struck.

Now, it is understood that a firm agreement will be announced today ahead of Centrica's shareholders' meeting.