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26 October - 1 November 2010
| NEW NUCLEAR: |
| Russia to build nuclear plant in Vietnam |
| 1 November 2010 |
| Russia has signed an intergovernmental agreement with Vietnam for the construction of the first nuclear power plant in the Southeast Asian country. Construction of the Ninh Thuan 1 plant is scheduled to start in 2014. |
| Prototype Prism proposed for Savannah River |
| 28 October 2010 |
| The idea of constructing a prototype Prism small modular reactor at the US Department of Energy's Savannah River site in South Carolina is to be jointly explored by GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy and Savannah River Nuclear Solutions. |
| Iter takes shape as major contracts look set to deliver |
| 28 October 2010 |
| A contract for the vacuum vessel and ramped up production rates for the super conducting magnet strands means that the next-step magnetic fusion reactor Iter is beginning to take shape. |
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| WASTE & RECYCLING: |
| Gearing up for MOX in Japan and US |
| 1 November 2010 |
| Work has officially begun on a plant to manufacture mixed oxide (MOX) fuel in Japan. Meanwhile international plans are in place to train the workforce for a new MOX plant under construction in the USA. |
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| NUCLEAR POLICIES: |
| New nuclear policy voted through |
| 29 October 2010 |
| Germany's nuclear power plants were assured extra operation by a vote yesterday in the Bundestag that completes a year-long change in the country's nuclear policy. |
| Negotiations start on new South Korea-US accord |
| 27 October 2010 |
| Discussions have started between South Korea and the USA towards a new civil nuclear cooperation agreement to replace their existing one, which expires in 2014. They have already agreed to jointly study reprocessing, which has been barred by the existing agreement. |
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| REGULATION & SAFETY: |
| Necsa consortium celebrates $25m contract |
| 29 October 2010 |
| The South African Nuclear Energy Corporation (Necsa) and its subsidiary NTP Radioisotopes (Pty) Ltd have won a $25 million US federal award to supply molybdenum-99 (Mo-99) produced from low-enriched uranium targets. |
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| CORPORATE: |
| NDA may transfer Capenhurst site to Urenco |
| 29 October 2010 |
| The UK's Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) is considering transferring management and operation of its Capenhurst operations to Urenco, which already owns and operates a centrifuge uranium enrichment plant on part of the site. |
| Joint efforts for new fuel plants |
| 28 October 2010 |
| Two new nuclear fuel fabrication plants are to be built: one in Kazakhstan by a joint venture including Areva, the other by TVEL in Ukraine. |
| EdF takes control of Unistar |
| 27 October 2010 |
| The two partners in Unistar Nuclear Energy have agreed a set of deals that will see Electricite de France (EdF) develop Calvert Cliffs 3 alone. |
| Japanese nuclear exports consortium launches |
| 26 October 2010 |
| A consortium has been officially launched in order to help Japan gain orders for nuclear power plants from so-called emerging nuclear countries. The consortium comprises nine electric utilities and three nuclear engineering companies. |
| Component maker recertified |
| 26 October 2010 |
| India's Larsen & Toubro has announced an expansion of its certification by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) as it prepares for export. |
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| EXPLORATION & NUCLEAR FUEL: |
| Argentina celebrates enrichment plant reactivation |
| 26 October 2010 |
| Argentina has formally reactivated its gaseous diffusion uranium enrichment plant at Pilcaniyeu over two decades after production there halted. The plant is expected to become operational in September 2011. |
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| INDUSTRY TALK: |
| Severstal makes overtures to Berkeley |
| 1 November 2010 |
| Russian steel and mining company OAO Severstal has approached Berkeley Resources in a move that may see it make a takeover bid for the company which is working to restart uranium production in Spain. |
| Finance for Indian nuclear expansion |
| 29 October 2010 |
| Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) has completed into a memorandum of understanding with government owned finance company Power Finance Corporation (PFC) to "facilitate NPCIL's large capacity addition program." |
