Ukrainian PM Reports Accident at Nuclear Power Plant

[Hissyspit]

Source: Reuters

Ukrainian PM reports accident at nuclear power plant

Wed Dec 3, 2014 5:59am EST

KIEV (Reuters) - Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk said on Wednesday an accident had occurred at the Zaporizhye nuclear power plant (NPP) in south-east Ukraine and called on the energy minister to hold a news conference.

"I know that an accident has occurred at the Zaporizhye NPP," Yatseniuk said, asking new energy minister Volodymyr Demchyshyn to make clear when the problem would be resolved and what steps would be taken to restore normal power supply across Ukraine.

News agency Interfax Ukraine said the problem had occurred at bloc No 3 - a 1,000-megawatt reactor - and the resulting lack of output had worsened the power crisis in the country. Interfax added that the bloc was expected to come back on stream on Dec. 5.

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSKCN0JH0ZV20141203

[Derek V]

1. The Tradition Continues

[DFW]

2. Here we go again

Last time, in 1986, we had to stop bringing our shoes indoors, not eat locally grown produce for months, and my wife (and now both my daughters, who were infants at the time) had/have thyroid tumors.

Merkel did the right thing after Fukushima, but we're surrounded by France and the Ukraine here, so whichever way the wind blows after an accident at one of these places, we get it the next time there is a breeze.

[DeSwiss]

3. K&R

[center][/center]

[lonestarnot]

4. Good Gawd.

[C_eh_N_eh_D_eh]

5. From CBC News:

Ukraine's Energy Minister Volodymyr Demchyshyn said on Wednesday an accident at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southeast Ukraine posed no danger and that the plant would return to running as normal on Dec. 5.

"There is no threat ... there are no problems with the reactors," Demchyshyn said at briefing, saying the accident affected the power output system and "in no way" was linked to power production itself.

In Vienna, the International Atomic Energy Agency said it had no immediate comment on the report. Under an international convention, adopted after the 1986 Chornobyl accident in what was then Soviet Ukraine, a country should notify the IAEA of any nuclear accident that can impact other countries.

News agency Interfax Ukraine said the problem had occurred at bloc No 3 — a 1,000-megawatt reactor — and the resulting lack of output had worsened the power crisis in the country. Interfax added that the bloc was expected to come back on stream on Dec. 5.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/ukraine-nuclear-power-plant-accident-no-threat-official-says-1.2858538


If Demchyshyn is telling the truth, then, well for all the people depending on that plant it's still bad news at an already bad time, but the rest of us can breathe easier.

[edbermac]

6. I saw this on a photo site the other day about Chernobyl

http://petapixel.com/2014/11/28/drone-footage-chernobyl-every-bit-haunting-expect/

[MattSh]

7. And yet these idiots have been using

nuclear fuel provided by Westinghouse instead of compatible fuel from Russia. And the new government is expanding the Westinghouse contract. Because Russia.

The International Union of Veterans of Nuclear Energy and Industry (IUVNEI) issued the following statement on April 25, "Nuclear fuel produced by the US firm Westinghouse does not meet the technical requirements of Soviet-era reactors, and using it could cause an accident on the scale of the Chernobyl disaster, which took place on the 26th April 1986.



Westinghouse still facing difficulties in Ukraine | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Westinghouse has been trying to gain a foothold in Ukraine for more than a decade by tailoring its fuel services to the country's Russian-made reactors. Its involvement there began after the U.S. government signed on to help Ukraine experiment with Western-made fuel in its reactors. The former Soviet republic has always relied on Russia to supply its fuel but wanted to hedge its bets with other suppliers. Ukraine is already dependent on Russia for its natural gas supplies.

In 2005, Westinghouse got a commercial contract with EnergoAtom to supply fuel assemblies between 2011 and 2015.

In 2012, during a routine inspection, the utility reported that Westinghouse's assemblies had structural damage. It had to swap those for Russian-made fuel assemblies, which the utility estimated cost $170 million.

EnergoAtom's attorney told Ukrainian media recently that the utility is preparing documents to file a suit against Westinghouse.

Earlier this summer, Westinghouse submitted a design proposal to the Ukrainian nuclear regulator for amending its fuel assemblies to resolve the alleged defects.

Then, in mid-July, inspectors found defects in another set of assemblies.

Complete story at - http://www.post-gazette.com/business/businessnews/2013/08/08/Westinghouse-still-facing-difficulties-in-Ukraine/stories/201308080382#ixzz2xuYfIs16

[Nihil]

8. I bet that soon drops into the memory hole ...

... to be replaced with screeds of propaganda from the usual suspects and uh, nope, not going to put money on who will be first ...

[LanternWaste]

9. A rather creative self-fulfilling prophecy you've constructed.

A rather creative self-fulfilling prophecy you've constructed.

[bemildred]

10. Can we please put someone competent in charge of Ukraine now?

Before these nitwits turn the whole place into rubble?

[cosmicone]

11. Time to send more of Victoria's cookies!! n/t

[seveneyes]

12. Maybe they can burn rubber tires to make steam

Or did they burn them all in the Kiev town square?