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THTR Newsletter No. 152,
December 2019:
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Content:
Urenco: Responsible for nuclear waste shipments and new HTR reactors!
What is / was TRISO? Deliver energy to the "soldiers in the open" with TRISO and Mini-HTRs!
NRW: HTR development by Urenco with TRISO!
Jordan also wants TRISO reactors
Private company becomes a GIF member
Citizens of the Reich involved in the dismantling of THTR Jülich
Film and report on the THTR cooling tower occupation in 1986
High temperatures in the jungle (HTR proponents in "Jungle World")
Indian land rights movement and Gandhi
Urenco: Responsible for nuclear waste shipments and new HTR reactors!
Where is our beautiful old banner "Dangerous uranium transports - no thanks!" That we used from 2007 during our protests against the transport of highly toxic uranium hexafluoride containers (UF-6) through Hamm? On the way from the French Pierrelatte For the uranium enrichment plant (UAA) Gronau, the train wagons were relocated for a few hours at the Hammer marshalling yard. And that every two weeks! ).
The banner hung directly on the railway line for several years and was now ailing. A new one was needed, because now there was a threat of uranium transport from the UAA via Hamm, Amsterdam and Petersburg to Russia.
For the 9th transport in 2019
Officially, the transport was not considered to be nuclear waste transport, but was euphemistically referred to as the transport of recyclable materials, because a very small part of the UF-6 is to be reprocessed and returned to Germany. But the taz of November 19, 11 wrote: “'This is not a recyclable material, it's rubbish,' says Vladimir Slivyak from the Russian environmental organization Ecodefense: 'Why else should Urenco pay Rosatom - and not the other way around?'” For Ecodefence it is cynical and immoral that Russia should be the nuclear waste dump for the Gronau UAA. Greenpeace has produced a six-page report in which the myth of the alleged recyclable material is refuted (2019).
When the ninth transport through Hamm was due in 2019, there were major protests. Vigils took place on November 18 in Gronau, Münster, Drensteinfurt and Hamm.
For us in Hamm it was a great success that 13.30 demonstrators took part in our vigil at 30 p.m. in front of the Hammer Hauptbahnhof (main train station) when it was raining continuously. Vladimir Slivyak from Russia also came and reported on the background of the transports. Matthias Eickhoff from Sofa (3) Münster announced that there had been abseiling actions on the railway line and that the nuclear waste train had been stopped. The diverse media coverage, the surprisingly high number of participants and the eight-hour blockade of the train are a great success and encourage us to stay active in the future!
The train itself is on the road for a total of three weeks. On November 21, 11, the taz reported and carried an interview with Viktor Kazakow, a critical blogger from the nuclear city of Novouralsk, "closed" with barbed wire, where the nuclear waste is stored and the uranium centrifuges are running.
He said: “The management of the city and the uranium enrichment plant are in fact identical. Overall, the authorities are pretty sure. You don't need to fear any protests or criticism. (...) Those who are practically serfs take on everything that their superiors want them to believe. And then he will not hate the poison, but those who do not want this poison to come to us. (...) Behind the barbed wire one lives more full and calm. And you don't even notice that it's humiliating. "
The transport of uranium waste to Russia was stopped in 2009 after fierce resistance. The fact that this, for Urenco, cheap disposal of their highly dangerous waste has now been resumed shows how important a shutdown of the UAA would be!
Urenco is a Dutch-British-German joint venture. The German shares are held by RWE and E.ON. These two energy supply companies are sabotaging the decision to phase out nuclear power with the production of fuel for nuclear facilities. It is high time the federal government took action!
And there is another reason to shut down the UAA: Urenco is currently pushing the construction of several hundred small HTR module reactors worldwide and wants to supply the necessary nuclear fuel at the same time. More details on this can be found in the next two articles.
Notes:
https://www.machtvonunten.de/lokales-hamm/307-uranhexafluorid-transporte-durch-hamm.html
2. http://www.hubertus-zdebel.de/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Greenpeace_Hintergrund_URENCO-UF6.pdf
Search the reaktorpleite.de with the keyword: atomic transport
http://www.reaktorpleite.de/interne-suche.html?q=Atomtransport
What is / was TRISO?
With TRISO and Mini-HTRs that provide energy to the “soldiers in the open field”!
Urenco develops and supports TRISO fuel elements for Small Modular Reactors (SMR) in order to continue doing good business with enriched uranium, especially in the USA, Canada and Great Britain.
What is / was TRISO?
"TRiststructural-ISOtropic" is a nuclear fuel made from triple-jacketed Pac spheres (plutonium, americium, curium). There is also a layer of carbon. TRISO was developed for the Dragon high-temperature reactor (1967-1975). TRISO was later used at AVR Jülich, but not in this specific form at THTR Hamm!
Why is there an increased use of TRISO now?
In the USA, uranium that was previously not suitable for nuclear weapons has been enriched on a larger scale, almost only in the range of less than 5 percent. Up to just under 20 percent enrichment level is not considered nuclear weapons capable and is referred to as HALEU fuel. It is precisely this fuel that will be needed for the small generation IV reactors of the future, which are becoming increasingly popular. In order to be able to survive in this new lucrative market, HALEU fuel must be produced in the USA as quickly as possible in order to be armed against the competition from Russia and China (Baotou).
The previous “extremely high” costs of the highest security level for this product line are no longer applicable because it is now being downgraded from Category 1 to Category 2, which is less expensive and less complex in terms of security. Less security = lower price.
Which companies are involved?
Special licenses are required in the USA for the production of HALEU fuel. It must take place with the participation of American companies. Involved are X-Energy, Centrus, Global Nuclear Fuel (GNF), GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy - and from 2011 Urenco USA in Eunice / New Mexico (formerly Louisiana Energy Services - LES)!
Urenco USA and its predecessor were and are the only uranium enrichment plant in the USA. It has been in operation from 2006 and full production started in 2010.
In which areas are reactors with TRISO fuel elements used?
In Generation IV reactors and also in light water reactors. Contracts have already been signed with the US Department of Defense (!). X-Energy emphasizes that TRISO is a "very robust fuel that is well suited for military and space applications". The US Department of Defense also says that this form of energy is important in times of crisis because military operations have become more energy-intensive than before. In the original language: "Save money and offer the soldiers in the field a main power source with increased flexibility and functionality".
In the civil sector, these small modules would be suitable for power supply in remote areas. Because of the importance attached to these small reactors, the US Department of Energy has issued a $ 12,5 billion loan guarantee to commercialize TRISO.
Sources:
http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/GNF-and-X-energy-team-up-to-produce-TRISO-fuel
http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Urenco-USA-announces-HALEU-activities
http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/US-clears-way-for-HALEU
NRW: HTR development by Urenco with TRISO!
A request from the Münster Bundestag member Hubertus Zdebel (1) brought it to light: Urenco, which is also based in Gronau, is preparing the use of Small Modular Reactors (SMR) worldwide. On the German side, RWE and E.ON are involved. In this way, RWE can build on the old HTR tradition line from Jülich and Hamm - despite the nuclear phase-out in Germany!
The new mini-reactors, also known as the “atomic battery”, are to be operated with TRISO fuel, which Urenco intends to manufacture. The Federal Government writes on this:
“TRISO fuels are very robust nuclear fuels that have been used, for example, in pebble bed reactors (AVR, THTR). (...) However, since the beginning of the 70s, some projects funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy as part of the reactor safety research have dealt with the safety of HTRs and similar reactor and fuel concepts ”.
The Federal Ministry expressly emphasizes that HTR research is still being carried out in Germany today. Urenco ties in seamlessly with this with the SMR! Specifically named are the "further development of modern methods in the area of combustion calculation" at Modular High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor (MHTGR) and the Japanese Very High Temperature Reactor Critical Assembly (VHTRC).
Reactors in the UK and Canada
The operating consortium under the direction of URENCO has carried out market analyzes for the use of such mini-nuclear power plants. "The tenor was positive," announced the federal government. Hubertus Zdebel continues:
“These analyzes have identified 200 potential locations in Great Britain. In Canada, 79 remote communities are initially eligible for the use of mini-nuclear reactors with a capacity of four MW. According to the federal government, Canada is striving to replace diesel generators with mini-reactors of this type in the future. URENCO is still exempt from the German nuclear phase-out.
The uranium company URENCO, one third of which is jointly owned by E.on and RWE, has been developing a new nuclear reactor since 2008 with the knowledge of the federal government. A first prototype of the Small Modular Reactor (SMR) known as the 'uranium battery' is due to go into operation in Canada in 2026 ”(2).
In contrast to conventional reactors, the uranium for the new SMR reactors is not enriched to 3 to 5 percent, but to up to 19,75 percent. This enrichment is only extremely slightly below the 20 percent threshold at which the enriched uranium is designated as capable of nuclear weapons. In the USA, military bases are to be equipped with these nuclear mini-power plants. The risk of proliferation is drastically increased with the worldwide construction of these reactors!
The federal government has no problem with any of this. The request of the left-wing faction to shut down Urenco and stop this development was rejected by the AfD, SPD, CDU / CSU and FDP in the Bundestag!
1. http://www.hubertus-zdebel.de/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/KA-URENCO-Mini-Reaktor-HALEU-19-13964.pdf
Search the reaktorpleite.de with the keyword: Urenco
http://www.reaktorpleite.de/interne-suche.html?q=Urenco
HTR-China: an endless story? "Very busy lately ..."
Whether for the resistance or the construction of a high-temperature reactor - we as BI are now used to thinking in longer temporal dimensions. This is no different with the two HTR-PM blocks on the Shandong peninsula in China. The intention to build was announced in 2005, the actual start of construction was only in 2012 and construction has been going on since then. And commissioning has been postponed again and again. It was the same in 2019.
But how do you do it year after year to gently teach an interested public that once again it won't work out on the planned date, while there is a lot of excitement and hectic activities behind the scenes?
There has recently been an interesting variant: Say it casually during a long speech about your countless successes and projects. This is exactly what happened on April 1, 2019, when Yu Jianfeng mentioned during the spring meeting of the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) that the two 200 MW units would be in the final phase of installation and commissioning, which would be in the first half should be completed by 2020 (1).
The next delay was announced just a few months later: On October 9, 2019, the news portal World Nuclear News (WNN) reported on a climate conference in Vienna, when CNNC President Jun Gu announced during a speech that the Chinese HTR would not be operational until the end of 2020 would go (2).
Will commissioning be an endless story?
Let's ask the core spin oracle, which has recently been called "Gaulos", with its special relationship with the regime. Know it more Well, so it is the everyday grueling small and small with such an unruly technology that has led to the delays:
"May 2019:" After the project was successful, it was checked and monitored by all those involved. The second SteamGenerator has arrived at the construction site so that all components are ready ”.
Oct 29, 2019: "..... very busy lately with the demonstration project and a lot of additional work. We are currently assembling the primary circuits of HTR-PM.5 ”.
What's next for an excuse?
Search the reaktorpleite.de with the keyword: China
http://www.reaktorpleite.de/interne-suche.html?q=China
Jordan also wants TRISO reactors
X-energy and Jordan signed a letter of intent on November 11, 2019, according to which a 2030 MW nuclear power plant is to be built by 300. And: “In the letter of intent, the construction of a total of four Xe-100 reactor modules from X-energy, each with 75 MW electrical output, is being considered. These reactor types are cooled with helium and operated with the Triso fuel patented by X-energy ”.
https://www.nuklearforum.ch/de/aktuell/e-bulletin/x-energy-und-jordanien-forcieren-zusammenarbeit
Search the reaktorpleite.de with the keyword: Jordan
http://www.reaktorpleite.de/interne-suche.html?q=Jordanien
Private company becomes a GIF member
So far, only states or associations of states (EU) have become members of Generation IV International Forum (GIF). That changed in May 2019. Canada-based company Terrestrial Energy is developing an Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR). “Before that, she had observer status in the working group for this reactor system for two years”.
https://www.nuklearforum.ch/de/aktuell/e-bulletin/terrestrial-energy-stoesst-zum-gif
Citizens of the Reich involved in the dismantling of THTR Jülich
For about thirteen years, an employee of the Jülich waste disposal company for nuclear plants was involved in the dismantling of the AVR test reactor. “In 2017 reports emerged, including from the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, which classified the man as a so-called 'Reich Citizen'. (...) The authorities became aware of the fact that the man had a “citizenship ID” issued from the Düren district. The so-called 'yellow note' is accepted by many citizens of the Reich as the only official document. They often reject other ID documents from the Federal Republic of Germany. A normal citizen rarely needs the 'yellow note'. The man had also posted comments on his Facebook page that the authorities considered questionable ”.
His “nuclear reliability” was withdrawn from him, and he was dismissed. The citizen of the Reich complained against it. The court dismissed the lawsuit. The dismissal was legal.
https://www1.wdr.de/nachrichten/rheinland/reichsbuerger-gegen-land-100.html
Film and report on the THTR cooling tower occupation in 1986
The homepage "divergences", which deals extensively with nonviolent actions, published an interesting article about the THTR cooling tower occupation in 1986. This is also about a remembrance meeting after 30 years of the occupiers involved at the time. The WDR video can also be seen here:
High temperatures in the jungle (HTR proponents in "Jungle World")
I usually appreciate the weekly newspaper “Jungle World” for its dedicated coverage of anti-Semitism and right-wing extremists. Reports with criticism of nuclear power plants can also be found here, but also a song of praise for the "new generation" of nuclear power plants!
Here Stefan Laurin from Bochum writes on March 28, 3: “What is necessary for all these developments is energy. And that can also be reliably generated with nuclear power plants. Fusion reactors are still a promise for the future. Much safer and less waste generating thorium reactors are currently being built in China. Companies in the USA and Canada are working on small, low-maintenance thorium reactors that could also be used in countries without high-tech infrastructure. Contrary to the most senseless and vicious (!!, HB) demand of a regressive environmental movement, energy must not become more expensive. It has to be cheaper ... "
In high-pitched tones, Laurin not only spreads his views in Jungle World and the Internet portal “Ruhrbarone”, but also in right-wing newspapers such as “Die Welt” and “Cicero”. I wonder what such an author is doing with this content in a left-wing magazine. Does she really need to draw attention to herself with such clumsy "taboo breaks"? Is she unfamiliar with the criticism of the Generation IV reactors from recognized experts such as the whistleblower and insider Rainer Moormann? Why does she not do an interview with him when The topic is so important to her? - Because she prefers to interview the Dortmund-based association “Nuklearia”, it happened on November 15, 11.
They also have a heart for high-temperature and pebble-bed reactors. The association emerged from the working group Nuklearia of the Pirate Party (!) And is unconventional and dynamic. It even sees itself as a "grassroots movement" for the misunderstood nuclear power, tried to dock with the Friday for Future with Greta postcards, organized a Nuclear Pride Fest (!) In Munich.
According to their own statements, the active atomic fans now have an enormous increase in membership and summarized with satisfaction at their last general meeting: "In the last 12 months we had more press inquiries than in the five years before, since the association was founded." Pro-nuclear contact for the media established, states Klute. "Well, where is the special thanks to" Jungle World "?
If you just browse the Nuklearia homepage, you will come across well-known names such as Jochen Michels, who reported on the status of HTR development in China at their annual general meeting. Michels, well-known to the readers of the THTR-Rundbrief (1), is a somewhat strange operator of the homepage "Biokernsprit" with connections to the now deceased, extremely wealthy industrialist Hermann Josef Werhahn (son-in-law of Adenauer, see 2) and not too picky about his alliance partners . It goes right into the scene of the deniers of a man-made climate catastrophe, Eike etc ...
The content of Nuklearia on Facebook is also treacherous. It was posted on November 12, 11: "Ben Wealer, main author of the scientifically inferior (!!, HB) German Institute for Economic Research eV (DIW Berlin) - 'Study' ...". The right-wing portals Tichy's Insight and Axis of the Good posted unrestrained messages at Nuklearia and even announced on March 2019, 27: "You can say what you want about the AfD, but it definitely asks the right questions about the nuclear phase-out ..." .
"Jungle World" researches so meticulously about the rights, why not here? - High time to write a letter to the editor for "Jungle World", I thought to myself. But there is no letters to the editor in this newspaper. It is simply not intended.
Anti-Semitism
A few months before the attack on a synagogue in Halle, I wrote a lengthy article on anti-Semitism in Germany in the magazine “Graswurzelrevolution”. It is not only about statistics, attacks, deficits in schools, reporting points, prevention and the uncertainty in the Jewish communities, but also about anti-Semitic "emotional inheritance" in the families, in which the "perpetrator generation" very often defensive attitude, glossing over, denying, Passing silence and lies on to the younger generation.
"Anti-Semitism in Germany 74 years after the Shoah" (GWR, June 2019)
One year after my article “Thessaloniki: The Destruction of the 'Jewish City' and its Consequences”, which was also reflected on the well-known Jewish homepage HaGalil, I wrote about Jewish-Sephardic music today and its significance in the strongly nationalist-oriented Greece: “ Savina Yannatou: No 'beautiful folklore!' "(GWR, September 2019):
https://www.machtvonunten.de/musik/360-savrina-yannatou-keine-schoene-folklore.html
Indian land rights movement and Gandhi
The twelve-month walk of the Indian land rights movement Ekta Parishad from Delhi to Geneva to the UN began on October 2, 2019. On this occasion, I discussed the book by its founder, Rajagopal PV.
"India: As Far As Your Feet Can Take" (GWR, March 2019)
Many leftists often do not feel the desire to deal more intensively with Mahatma Gandhi, but have read "somewhere" that he was in reality a right wing, a racist or a defender of the caste system and pass it on. To counteract this disinformation, Lou Marin and I published the book “Gandhi. 'I am an anarchist myself, but of a different kind' ”(140 pages, 13,90 euros). The texts by Lou Marin and Gandhi make it clear that the allegations are unfounded. They show how Gandhi's positions developed and radicalized: as early as 1908 in South Africa in a collective with Jewish non-violent people, but especially during the three decades of the anti-colonial struggle in India.
Finally, I will show that the current social movement for land rights refers to Gandhi's salt march and that the nonviolent libertarian tradition is still relevant to the struggles from below in today's India. Further information here:
https://www.machtvonunten.de/literatur/349-indien-so-weit-die-fuesse-tragen.html
https://www.graswurzel.net/gwr/produkt/gandhi/
Search the reaktorpleite.de with the keyword: India
http://www.reaktorpleite.de/interne-suche.html?q=Indien
Dear readers! Ladies and Gentlemen!
A few months ago I was offered the domain "hoch Temperaturreaktor.de" for sale because the previous owner had lost interest in the topic. Also, the nuclear-critical "Strahlentelex", which had reported on the THTR several times, has unfortunately ceased its publication after 32 years.
The so-called "shutdown operation" of the THTR is supposed to last another seven years, but what will come next is uncertain.
It is clear that the critical journalistic support of the THTR demands a lot of patience. And the newsletter will continue to appear once or twice a year. In addition, with Generation IV and the new SMR reactors from Urenco, we have a topic that we are sticking to.
I will update the subscription list next year. If you haven't contacted us in the last two years, please do so soon in order to continue to receive the THTR-Rundbrief. I am happy about every sign of life!
The "map of the nuclear world"
now contains almost 1000 entries with a lot of additional information. The German version of the map has been continuously worked on since 2011 and more than 220 real people (with thousands of clicks) visit this map every day. There are already first approaches to the map in English with approx. 375 entries: The English one "Map of the nuclear World" Like the German version, it can be accessed via https://www.reaktorpleite.de/nukleare-welt.html.
In this context, idealistic young people are sought who would like to actively participate in the internationalization of the offer. Specifically, it is about the content of the "Map of the Nuclear World" to translate into different languages such as Chinese, English, Hindi, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, etc. to proofread. Interested parties are welcome to contact: w.neubauer@thtr-a.de
Only a few copies of the THTR-Rundbrief are made by hand on paper and distributed under https://www.reaktorpleite.de however, the newsletter reaches many thousands of visitors over time. For example, THTR Newsletter No. 149 from December 2017 had over 112.000 visitors.
When it comes to visitors, we are talking about real people, not robots (bots) who have clicked into at least 3 different pages and stayed there for at least 30 seconds.
Queries and clicks result in quite a few, but they are all only counted as one visitor (1 visit).
For work on 'THTR circular', 'reaktorpleite.de' and 'Map of the nuclear world' we need up-to-date information, energetic, fresh comrades-in-arms under 100 (;-) and donations. If you can help, please send a message to: info@reaktorpleite.de
Donation appeal
- The THTR circular is published by the 'BI Environmental Protection Hamm' and is financed by donations.
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