Tag: nuclear power

In his combative preface to the report, Kiyoshi Kurokawa, a medical doctor and professor emeritus at Tokyo University, said the crisis was the result of "a multitude of errors and willful negligence", by the government, safety officials and the plant's operator, Tokyo Electric Power [Tepco].

With the national interests prevailing over the EU's competencies in nuclear energy, the EU must come up with a plan to move towards an effective common energy policy, argue MEPs Corine Lepage, Jo Leinen and Satu Hassi.

A Green MEP has called for the Centraco nuclear waste treatment site in Marcoule to be shut down, as the French Nuclear Safety Authority (ASN) begins an inquiry into a blast there yesterday (12 September) that killed one man and injured four others, one with severe burns.

Business lobbies are pushing for EU action to examine or derail Germany's planned exit from the nuclear power club after the Fukushima disaster.

A battle over the future shape of Germany's energy industry is looming after its pioneering decision to shut all 17 of its nuclear reactors by 2022.

European leaders agreed on Friday (25 March) to set the "highest standards" of nuclear safety and submit all plants to "stress tests", in the wake of the unfolding crisis at Japan's stricken Fukushima plant.

The Finnish government yesterday (21 April) unveiled plans for two new nuclear reactors as part of the country's drive to meet the EU's climate obligations and free itself completely from Russian imports.

The centre-right Swedish government unveiled legislation on 22 March to allow the construction of new nuclear reactors, in a bid to replace the ten ageing ones that still produce about 40% of the country's electricity.

On a visit to Sofia, Energy Commissioner Guenter Oettinger said yesterday (2 March) that the EU executive is interested in securing "European participation" in financing the Belene nuclear power plant, a project being built in northern Bulgaria by Russia's Atomstroyeksport. Dnevnik, EurActiv's partner in Bulgaria, reports.

Italy yesterday (24 February) became the latest EU country to embark on a new wave of nuclear energy development, as Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and French President Nicolas Sarkozy signed a deal to build new plants in Italy.

Despite recent nuclear scares in Slovenia and France, the European Commission this week gave the go-ahead for the two remaining reactors to be completed at the controversial Mochovce nuclear plant in Slovakia. The decision was widely condemned by environmental group Greenpeace. EurActiv Slovakia reports.

In this dossier, published by Deutsche-Aussenpolitik.De, Marco Overhaus analyses the European contribution to the negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program, focusing on the consequences for the EU’s international role.

Results from a Eurobarometer  survey reveal that EU citizens remain uninformed about radioactive waste and are sceptical about the credibility of information from national governments and the media on nuclear energy.

Bulgarian Minister of Energy Milko Kovachev has urged the Commission to speed up its inspection of Bulgaria's nuclear power plant at Kozloduy.

To meet its greenhouse gas emissions' reduction target, the UK government must lift its moratorium on building new nuclear power stations, warn scientists from the Royal Society.

On 6 November, the Commission adopted several controversial proposals on nuclear energy. The proposals would give the Commission more supervisory powers over the safety of the nuclear sector in view of the Union's enlargement.

Europe's businesses and public institutions could cut their carbon dioxide emissions by an amount equal to the emissions of Denmark by buying 'green' electricity. That is the main message of a new campaign launched on 24 June by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)

Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel has criticised his government coalition partner, Jörg Haider, for his campaign against EU enlargement. Mr Haider, leader of the far-right Austrian Freedom Party, demands more EU aid for Austria's border regions in order to avoid Vienna's veto to enlargement. He has also threatened to veto Czech membership of the EU unless the Czech Republic closes down the nuclear power plant in Temelin.