Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) shut down Unit 6 of the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Station, one day after restarting it, due to a technical malfunction.
According to a Jan. 22 New York Times article, the alarm went off in the power plant while technicians were adjusting Unit 6’s control rods, the cylinders used to regulate or stop the power output of a reactor. Since the cause of the alarm was not immediately found, TEPCO shut down the reactor to investigate the situation.
TEPCO said in the article that safety was its highest priority and will soon inform the public of the results of its investigation.
Aalo Atomics has completed its final design review with independent Department of Energy and Nuclear Regulatory Commission reviewers for its pilot reactor.
In Aalo’s Jan. 22 press release, it said the final design review was completed in a 16-hour session over the span of two days. Outside of the design of the reactor, Aalo shared its plans for plant operations, security and other administrative things in the review.
Aalo said its next step is to integrate the reviewers’ feedback and submit a final documented safety analysis and readiness assessment. Once approved, the company will have cleared all of the regulatory requirements to turn its reactor.
The Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy has established a center at Idaho National Laboratory (INL) focused on research and development for used nuclear fuel management.
DOE said in the Jan. 14 press release that the Center for Used Fuel Research is designed to be a national and international hub for applied research for used nuclear fuel. INL will coordinate collaboration among other DOE complexes, universities and industry members across the United States.
“This strategic move underscores the DOE’s renewed commitment to solving one of the nation’s most pressing energy and environmental challenges and delivers on a key element of the 1995 Idaho Settlement Agreement establishing INL as the DOE lead used nuclear fuel research laboratory,” DOE said.
Newly elected New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill (D) has signed an executive order to form a state interagency nuclear task force focused on developing new nuclear generation.
The Jan. 20 executive order leans on developing new megawatts in the short term with energy sources such as solar and battery and long-term nuclear power. The power generation order marked the second executive action made by Sherrill, who was inaugurated as governor on Jan. 20.
The New Jersey Nuclear Power Task Force will be led by leaders from the state’s “BPU [Board of Public Utilities], DEP [Department of Environmental Protection], the Economic Development Authority, the Department of Military Affairs, and the Department of the Treasury,” according to the order.
Canadian company General Fusion announced it has begun the process to become a publicly owned company.
General Fusion, a British Columbia-based company, said in a Jan. 22 press release it has entered a definitive business combination agreement with Spring Valley Acquisition Corp. (SVAC) III. The proposed business combination is expected to be completed by mid-2026.
The proposed business combination between the two companies “implies an approximately US$1 billion pro-forma equity value inclusive of approximately US$105 million from a committed and oversubscribed PIPE [Private Investment in Public Equity] and US$230 million of SVAC’s trust capital (assuming no redemptions),” according to the release.