Video Day: The Molten Salt Thorium Reactor

Cheerful Nuclear Video for Friday

This is a nice little pro-nuclear video, which ends with a push for the development of molten salt thorium reactors. One of the nice things about this video is the comparison between quantities of nuclear waste (tiny amounts) and solar panel waste (huge amounts). Both of these waste streams contain toxic materials.


 

Myth of the Polar Vortex: My Upcoming Webinar

Date: Thursday, November 6, 2014 | Length: 60 Minutes Time:1 pm ET | 12 pm CT | 11 am MT | 10 am PT Speaker - Meredith Joan Angwin Last winter (2013-2014) the freezing weather of the polar vortex drove grid electricity prices to new heights in the Northeast. In subzero weather, natural gas was used for home heating: therefore gas-fired power plants could not obtain the fuel they needed. Utilities made up for the missing natural gas by burning oil and even jet fuel. Expensive fuels made expensive electricity. At the end of the winter, many utilities announced electricity price rises. Though the Polar Vortex caused a major temporary price rise, the Polar Vortex was not the true cause. Even without a polar vortex, electricity costs will probably rise rapidly in the near future, in many areas of the country. Cost drivers include coal and nuclear plant closings, overreliance on gas-fired electricity, and a strong possibility of increased prices for natural gas from shale. This course will use the Northeast as an example, but also address how similar issues are arising in other parts of the country. As the cost of electricity increases, electricity production and distribution companies will be faced with unhappy consumers and regulators. These companies will have to meet the challenge of explaining the price increases to their customers, regulators, and the press. They will need to be effective at describing the overall situation with regard to electricity and natural gas supply. (Natural gas suppliers will face some of the same challenges). Many energy company employees have to work with regulatory bodies or members of the public. Each person in this position should know the concepts in this course. Hockey-stick price rises are probably in the near future. People, who face the public ranging from industry lobbyists to customer service representatives, need to be ready and able to explain this price rise. Join Meredith Joan Angwin, in this riveting session to learn: Electricity supply is constricting, due to coal and nuclear plants retirements and over-dependence on gas fired power plants Gas-fired plants are subject to seasonal shortages and price spikes Gas prices set the overall grid price. All generators who bid into the grid market get the "market-clearing" price. This is the highest price that the grid operator accepts for that time period. All bidders get this price, whatever they bid Incentives for renewables may meet certain goals that society holds, but they tend to increase the price of power and do very little to alleviate supply crunches Grid operators attempt to ensure reliability, but this often means encouraging the use of more expensive fuels, such as oil or jet fuel Only partial cost protection is possible at end-user levels. This will probably increase local outrage against the power plants, power companies, etc. Learn three key points about the electricity supply that can be used to explain the de facto shortages and actual price rises. Learn three strategies that end-users can use to partially control their electric bills. And much more! Benefits of the session: Learn how pricing works on the electricity grid Discover the factors and decisions that determine electricity prices Learn why many areas are probably at an inflection point in electricity prices, and can expect rapid price rises Predict how prices are likely to move in the near future, in many parts of the country Learn the strategies the grid operators are using to ensure reliability and partially control costs Learn strategies that end-users can use to partially control costs Register Now! Use discount code "MJA20" to get $20 off. About Our Speaker:- Meredith Joan Angwin has thirty years of experience covering almost every aspect of utility operations. She is inventor on two patents in pollution control methods for gas-fired power plants. She was a project manager at the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) in renewable (geothermal) energy. In that position, she supervised building a computer code to predict corrosion in geothermal systems, and assessed the economic viability of the Los Alamos Hot Dry Rock project, and of potential projects in the Gulf Coast geopressured zone. Read More! Ask a question at the Question and Answers session following the live event and get advice unique to your situation, directly from our expert speaker.

Vermont Yankee and the State: Guest Post by Richard January

Connecticut River near my home in Wilder

For years, Vermont Yankee opponents have insisted: “Let the State have more say.” A recent news article reports now that state environmental officials seem likely to find in favor of the plant. One longtime Vermont Yankee foe is fretting about the national ramifications of a looming decision by a state agency.

The Vermont Agency of Natural Resources plans to uphold the safe, proven practice of running cool Connecticut River water over steam-filled Vermont Yankee pipes, then discharging it downstream. The Connecticut River Watershed Council (CWRC) is concerned about the “precedent” this ruling might set.

The CWRC risks inflicting economic and environmental harm to Vermonters so that it can make a national statement. The agreement between Entergy and the state to decommission Yankee will provide several more months of low-carbon, low-cost electricity – an increasingly scarce commodity in New England – followed by millions of dollars for economic redevelopment. But the State of Vermont has to keep its end of the settlement agreement for this to happen.

Vermont Yankee will shut down at the end of the year. Vermont does not need to risk the financial benefits Vermont Yankee has agreed to provide so that the CWRC can make a point.

Richard January
Jaffrey, New Hampshire

-----
This letter to the editor has appeared in several newspapers in Vermont.

Richard January is a senior lead engineer at Vermont Yankee.

It is important to note that the Connecticut River Watershed Council (CRWC) is a group opposed to Vermont Yankee.  The name sounds fairly official, but it is not a government consortium about the watershed. There IS a government consortium about the watershed: it is the Connecticut River Joint Commissions.  I explain the difference between the two organizations in this post: The River and the Rhetoric--Who Speaks for the River

Looking Back and Looking Ahead

This September was our 49th wedding anniversary. I have been so lucky to have married such a good man.

The anniversary is a reason to look back and to think ahead.

Tonight, I am going to a goodbye party for a friend from Vermont Yankee.  She is leaving for a job in Louisiana.

Another reason to look back and to think ahead.

I'm doing a lot of thinking nowadays.

George and I on our wedding day, 1965
We had a modest wedding at my mother's apartment.

George and I celebrating our anniversary this month.
Lunch at Simon Pearce in Quechee.

Soaring Prices in New England: An Update And Another Update

Electricity Prices Rises in New England, Updated

Golden coins

On Saturday, I posted Electricity Prices Soar in New England. And Soon In Vermont. In this post, I used two examples of recent rate hikes: National Grid in Massachusetts is raising rates by 37%, and Liberty Mutual in New Hampshire is raising rates by 50%.

Since then, New Hampshire Electric Coop announced a rate increase of 12%. Public Service of New Hampshire, which owns the Merrimack Station Coal Plant, expects only a slight rate increase. Another New Hampshire utility, Unitil, will soon file for a winter rate.  NHPR reports Electric Co-op Latest Utility To Announce Rate Increase.

Hah!  This just in! Unitil (New Hampshire utility) announced that the close-to-100% price rise on the grid (8.4 cents to 15.5 cents) will cost Unitil customers an extra $42 per month, starting in December. Unitil Electric Rates to Rise $42 per month.

Price Mealy-Mouthing in New England, Updated

Meanwhile, closer to home, Green Mountain Power and its sister utility, Vermont Gas Systems, explain that they are efficient and will therefore have stable prices. (This seems to imply that neighboring utilities are inefficient.) WCAX reports: GMP and Vermont Gas Keep Stable Prices. 

Both GMP and Vermont Gas are wholly-owned subsidiaries of Gaz Metro.

My own interpretation of the GMP statement about stable prices is quite simple: they aren't announcing the price rise just yet.  Gaz Metro companies don't always announce things promptly, as far as I can tell.

For example, the Vermont Gas pipeline expansion will cost $120 million dollars, which is $35 million more than regulators approved. Vermont Gas knew of the overrun in March, but did not notify regulators until July (meanwhile, Vermont Gas kept building the pipeline). Vermont Gas was fined $35,000 for this delay in notification.  Vermont Digger reports: Vermont Supreme Court Clears PSB to Reconsider Vermont Gas Pipeline.

A Well-Written Report from Conca at Forbes

Meanwhile, at Forbes, James Conca has an excellent post (including a link to my Saturday post): Closing Vermont Nuclear Bad Business for Everyone. He shows how closing Vermont Yankee is hurting our neighboring states.  It is a pleasure to read a good post about our area in the national media. I also urge you to read and join the lively comment stream on that post.

Consumer Liaison Group

I was just elected to the Coordinating Committee of the Consumer Liaison Group (CLG) of the grid operator, ISO-NE. I am one of two representatives from Vermont on the committee.  The group exchanges information with ISO about policies that affect consumers.  It also advises ISO.

I went to the CLG meeting September 24, but that is a subject for a whole different blog post. As you can imagine, however, the coming price rises were a major topic of discussion.

More updates soon.

Update again:  

Berkshire Eagle reports that National Grid price rise will cost homeowners up to $100 a month more on their bills and cost even more to businesses: National Grid Customers, Lawmakers Charged Up about Rate Increase.


Update: Some People Love Expensive Electricity An important post from Rod Adams: a review of the philosophy of people who celebrate the price rises because "the only way to guarantee that energy conservation measures are diligently pursued in this country is to make energy a very precious and expensive commodity. " (This quote was part of a comment on James Conca's article in Forbes.) Rod's post: Purposeful Price Pumping By Constraining Supply

Nuclear Energy Blog Carnival 228: Here at Yes Vermont Yankee

Once again, we are proud to host the Carnival of Nuclear Energy Bloggers here at Yes Vermont Yankee.  The Carnival is a compendium of nuclear blogs that rotates from blog site to blog site, and it is always a pleasure and an honor to host it.

This week, several posts are concerned with nuclear's effect on the environment, or people's perceptions of nuclear's effects on the environment.  So let's start there.

Nuclear Energy and the Environment.

Water and Energy:  A Close Connection
http://www.nukepowertalk.blogspot.com/2014/09/water-and-energy.html

At Nuke Power Talk, Gail Marcus addresses an article which claimed that growing water shortages might shift energy production away from coal and nuclear power. Marcus points out that 1) cooling towers and advanced nuclear technologies can help meet the needs for water more efficiently, and 2) some renewable energy technologies also have significant water needs.

What it means to be pro-nuclear (part 1)
http://nuclearlayperson.wordpress.com/2014/09/22/what-it-means-to-be-pro-nuclear-part-1/

At the new blog, Nuclear Layperson, Amelia Cook (aka MillySievert) is asked by a childhood friend if she is "really convinced by nuclear"? Cook looks at the complicated nature of the "pro-nuclear" label and offers some alternative descriptions. One of her descriptions is I am pro low-carbon sources of energy. 

DOE Energy Calculator: Coal, Dynamite, Burritos, and Nuclear Candy
http://us.arevablog.com/2014/09/26/doe-energy-calculator-coal-dynamite-burritos-and-nuclear-candy/

The Areva Blog reviews the Department of Energy's online tool for calculating the average amount of

energy you consume each year.  in energy-equivalent terms of coal, dynamite, and burritos (yes, burritos). Turns out the average American burns up the annual energy equivalent of 15,370 pounds of coal (7.7 tons). But the DOE tool lacks a crucial alternative comparison: eight gummy-bear-size pieces of nuclear fuel would reliably power every hour of your life for a year – without climate impact emissions.

Vermont Yankee Powers Down While Vermont Protestors Flock Down to New York City to Protest Climate Change
http://yesvy.blogspot.com/2014/09/vermont-yankee-powers-down-while.html#.VChfRihCqvI

In this post, Yes Vermont Yankee considers the irony of Vermont protestors driving to New York City to protest climate change. They were carrying banners about "saying no to nuclear energy." The post also contains links to life-cycle studies of nuclear and renewable carbon footprints.

Nuclear power and the U.N. Green Climate Fund

http://canadianenergyissues.com/2014/09/25/nuclear-power-and-the-u-n-green-climate-fund/

Steve Aplin of Canadian Energy Issues  looks at what will actually reduce carbon. Back in 2008, if you were a major financial investor, the smart thing to do was to put your money into credit default swaps. If  you were a small investor and connected to the right people, the smart place to put your money was into one of Bernie Madoff’s funds. And today, if you want to cut carbon without killing your economy, the smart thing to do is to go gangbusters into wind and solar. Aplin suggest ignoring the smart green energy consensus reflected in reportage on the U.N. Climate Summit in New York. Instead, notice what technologies will actually reduce carbon.

Deer Leap Falls, Poconos
Not a hydro site, so far

Why I support nuclear energy

http://efncanada.com/support-nuclear-energy/

At the new blog for Environmentalist for Nuclear Canada, Robert Rock describes cost and safety as two important reasons to support nuclear energy.  Other blog posts at this new blog include subjects such as The basics of climate change.

Indeed, though nuclear does protect the climate and the environment, it is also a very valuable industry.  Using the Rock post as a bridge, let's look at the nuclear industry as, you know, an industry.

The Nuclear Industry as an Industry: New Builds and More

South Africa inks 9.6 Gwe $50B reactor deal with Russia

http://neutronbytes.com/2014/09/23/south-africa-inks-9-6-gwe-10b-reactor-deal-with-russia

Dan Yurman at Neutron Bytes reports on the Rosatom deal to build several (up to eight) nuclear reactors in South Africa. This deal has been on-again and off-again, and it mirrors the tender South Africa released in 2007 and then cancelled. But this time is different.  This time Eskom, the state-owned electric utility, isn’t in the picture.

Seven Decades Past, A New Dawn

http://ansnuclearcafe.org/2014/09/26/seven-decades-past-a-new-dawn/

At ANS Nuclear Cafe, Will Davis starts by looking back at the early days, when nuclear was part of the Manhattan Project. Seventy years ago, the first full scale nuclear reactor started up at Hanford, Washington, and the world hasn't been the same since.  See rare photos of the project to build it, and learn the history of the first working reactor.

The Nuclear Weapons States: Who Has Them And How Many

http://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesconca/2014/09/25/the-nuclear-weapons-states-who-has-them-and-how-many/

As long as we are talking about the Manhattan Project, let's look at whether nuclear energy leads to nuclear weapons? The answer is no. Nuclear energy does not lead to nuclear weapons. James Conca at Forbes explains that there are nine nuclear weapons states with about 10,000 weapons. These weapons were all made from nuclear weapons programs, not commercial nuclear energy programs. There are two paths to the bomb. Iran tried one but will not succeed. North Korea took the other and succeeded. 

Consensus standards in industry
http://newsok.com/consensus-standards-in-industry/article/5345101

Nanocrystal
World's smallest reference material
Developed by NIST

In this post, Robert Hayes describes important standards in industry. These range from manufacturing
specifications to testing and procurement requirements. He describes the important role of NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology) and professional organizations (ASME, for example) in setting these standards.

A Plea to Tepco and Tokyo – Just Do It!

http://www.hiroshimasyndrome.com/fukushima-commentary.html

At Hiroshima Syndrome, Les Corrice considers the best possible way to reduce the wastewater problem at F. Daiichi? Tepco and Tokyo should start dumping the stored waters already run through ALPS as soon as the local fishermen and the public have been fully informed. Wait a minute…they already have! Damn the radiophobic fears and unfounded rumors…JUST DO IT!

Electricity Prices Soar in New England. And Soon in Vermont.
http://yesvy.blogspot.com/2014/09/electricity-prices-soar-in-new-england.html#.VChAVihCqvI

Yes Vermont Yankee reports that electric prices in Massachusetts and New Hampshire are jumping by 35-50%, partially due to the retirement of Vermont Yankee nuclear plant and Salem Harbor coal plant. The state of Vermont will not be immune from this trend.

Passive Safety: Staying on Track

http://www.neimagazine.com/features/featurepassive-safety-staying-on-track-4385660/

In this article at Nuclear Engineering International, Joseph Somsel takes a somewhat critical look at passive safety design concepts based on a case study of Casey Jones' famous accident. The successful deployment of a passive safety system was a major cause of the accident.

Somsel notes that basic problem for our industry is that making a nuclear power plant ten times safer won't make a single additional sale.  Making electricity from a nuclear reactor half the cost will sell many of them.

This look into the future (and into the railroad past) leads to the last part of our blog carnival.  What's new!

New Types of Reactors

Integrated Molten Salt Reactor should demonstrate the lowest lifetime cost of energy of any known technology

http://nextbigfuture.com/2014/09/integrated-molten-salt-reactor-should.html

Canada's Terrestrial Energy Corporation is a leader in molten salt reactors. Nextbigfuture believes they have a good chance at creating an energy revolution because of their low cost and low development risk design. Their main advantage is the Canadian oilsands. Hundreds of IMSR reactor can be used to generate steam for oil recovery.

Cost is important. Low cost and accessible energy supply is linked to living standards and quality of life.

Molten Salt Reactor Projects in the U.K.
http://nextbigfuture.com/2014/09/molten-salt-reactor-projects-in-uk.html

Molten Salt, laboratory scale

A feasibility study for a next-gen Molten Salt Reactors (MSRs) has won funding from the Technology Strategy Board, the UK government’s strategic innovation agency. The bid was led by the indefatigable Jasper Tomlinson and Professor Trevor Griffiths. In a first for the UK, the project will produce a rigorous desk- and computer-based study of the feasibility of a pilot-scale MSR, based on the latest science.

Ian Scott has recently founded a UK based molten salt reactor development start-up, Moltex Energy LLP.

Electricity Prices Soar in New England. And Soon in Vermont.

 Neighboring States

Yesterday and today, two New England electricity distribution companies announced the rate increases that they require for winter.  Vermont can expect similar price rises.  Let's start with the neighboring states.

Massachusetts 37%: National Grid says that its customers in western Massachusetts can expect a 37% rate hike on November first, due to the retirement of Vermont Yankee nuclear plant and Salem coal plants. Other factors were also cited, including the fact that there are no new gas pipelines, expensive replacement fuels are used in winter, and natural gas prices are rising.  The higher electricity prices in Massachusetts will be in effect until April.  The video clip about the price rise finishes with a recommendation: people should think about replacing their older energy-hog refrigerators with a newer model.

New Hampshire 50%: Meanwhile, in New Hampshire, a small utility expects to double the "energy charge" portion of customer's bills in November.  The company, Liberty Utilities, explains that this will lead to an increase of about 50% in the customer's bills. A spokesman for Liberty Utilities explains that when demand for natural gas exceeds the supply, electric generators must use more expensive fuels to generate electricity, therefore driving up prices for the whole electricity market. This utility is located very close to my home in Vermont.

Is Vermont Different?  Well, no.

The latest we heard, the major Vermont utility, Gaz Metro (aka Green Mountain Power) was lowering rates by 2.5%, largely due to revenue sharing from Vermont Yankee.   Maybe we're good, here in Vermont? Too bad about the other states, but we're good?

Vermont: Yeah, we have grid power.  Nope.  Not really.  We're not good. None of our major utilities agreed to buy power from Vermont Yankee after the 2012 end of the plant's NRC license. Instead of buying Vermont Yankee power, they basically bought grid power. They bought one million megawatt-hours more grid power per year than they had purchased when they had contracts with Vermont Yankee.  Guy Page of Vermont Energy Partnership wrote Vermont Electricity At A Glance in March 2013, showing how much grid power Vermont utilities now purchase.

The Vermont Yankee license was renewed for another 20 years, but still, our utilities shunned  the plant.  They buy a lot of grid power, and  they are partially vulnerable to the same wholesale electricity market prices that affect the utilities in New Hampshire and Massachusetts.

Vermont: Yeah, we have Hydro Quebec Power. Partially vulnerable?  Did I say partially vulnerable? I meant mostly vulnerable!

Spillway in Hydro Quebec system

The jewel-in-the-crown of Vermont power purchases are the utility contracts with Hydro-Quebec.  See, it's not all grid power in this state.

But...those contracts don't matter.  As I wrote in two posts in 2010 (March 2010 and   December 2010) Vermont contracts with Hydro Quebec are market-follow contracts.  If the grid price goes up, the rate that Hydro Quebec charges Vermont also goes up. As I wrote in the December post, A Bad Deal with Hydro-Quebec,  these contracts will NOT protect us against major rises in grid prices.  The contracts have a little price-smoothing. Prices will not bounce around with the daily market changes. But those 35-50% price rises in other states aren't because of the volatility of the grid prices.  The price rises in other states are because of the total electricity cost raises on the grid.

I expect a similar price rise for Vermont.

Watch for it.

I suspect, however, that Green Mountain Power will probably not announce the price rise until after the election in November.