Fukushima News

On December 8, 1953 President Dwight D. Eisenhower addressed the 470th Plenary Meeting of the United Nations General Assembly. The speech he delivered is often recognized as his effort to introduce “Atoms for Peace”, a program to move nuclear fission and technology away from weapons development and into clean energy.As a result of that effort and program, the NS Savannah was built and delivered as the first nuclear-powered merchant ship. She was built in the late 1950s at a cost of $46.9 million and launched on July 21, 1959.

Floating nuclear power plants (FNPPs) may not immediately spring to mind as providing a solution to several of today’s key global challenges – but FNPP development is emerging as a means of decentralized stand-alone production of cost competitive hydrogen-based fuels and clean electricity and water, according to a new report by Intelatus Global Partners.The commercial case for deployment of FNPPs featuring small modular reactors is founded in the growing demand for hydrogen and…

Japan will divert some liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargoes to Europe after requests from the United States and the European Union, the industry minister said on Wednesday, a step that aligns the country with the West as tensions flare with Russia.Concern has mounted over the possible disruption of supplies from Russia, Europe's biggest gas provider, following the buildup of Russian troops near Ukraine and heightened tensions between Moscow and the West.The extra shipments are expected to arrive next month, minister Koichi Hagiuda told reporters."We have decided to respond to requests from the United States and EU for sending LNG to Europe, where gas supply is tight," Hagiuda said after separately meeting with the U.S.

Japan's health ministry said on Tuesday it had ordered the suspension of shipments of black rockfish caught off Fukushima prefecture after radiation exceeding an upper limit was detected in a catch late last month.The development comes on the heels of an announcement by Taiwan that it would relax a ban on food imports from Japan put in place after the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster.The suspension means the targetted fish would not be shipped, regardless of the destination, a ministry official said. (Reporting by Kiyoshi Takenaka; Editing by Andrew Heavens)

Japan has been largely forgotten as a source of demand for energy commodities, overshadowed by the rapid rise of China, but the country's new electricity generation targets will shake the market up.For many years Japan has been viewed as a largely steady source of demand for liquefied natural gas (LNG) and thermal coal used in power generation, with small variations in the volumes imported on a year-by-year basis.But this comfortable situation for commodity producers supplying…

Japan will release more than 1 million tonnes of contaminated water from the destroyed Fukushima nuclear station into the sea, the government said on Tuesday, a move opposed by neighbors including China, which called it "extremely irresponsible."The first release of water will take place in about two years, giving plant operator Tokyo Electric Power time to begin filtering the water to remove harmful isotopes, build infrastructure and acquire regulatory approval.Japan has argued…

JERA, Japan's biggest electricity generator and the world's largest buyer of liquefied natural gas (LNG), is operating gas- power plants at lower rates as it runs down inventories amid rising heating demand as temperatures drop.The company joins other Japanese power generators reducing run rates on their gas plants as they compete with LNG buyers across northern Asia scrambling to secure supplies, sending prices higher.Tight fuel supplies are also highlighting vulnerabilities in Japan's electricity grid that make it harder to swap power supplies between areas a decade after the Fukushima nucle

Nearly a decade after the Fukushima nuclear disaster, Japan's government has decided to release over one million tonnes of contaminated water into the sea, media reports said on Friday, with a formal announcement expected to be made later this month.The decision is expected to rankle neighboring countries like South Korea, which has already stepped up radiation tests of food from Japan, and further devastate the fishing industry in Fukushima that has battled against such a move…

Most of the fuel left on a Japanese bulk carrier that has leaked an estimated 1,000 tonnes of oil off the Mauritius coast has been pumped off, ship owner Nagashiki Shipping said on Wednesday.Mauritian Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth said on Tuesday that the MV Wakashio was still holding 2,000 tonnes of oil and was expected to break up, raising concern of a major ecological disaster."I heard the collection is almost over, but it is hard to tell if there is absolutely no oil left on the ship…

TEPCO Renewable Power, a unit of Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, plans to spend about 1-2 trillion yen ($9-18 billion) to develop 6-7 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind and hydroelectric power projects by 2035, its president said."We aim to boost our profit to 100 billion yen in 2030 from 40 billion yen now" through the investments, Seiichi Fubasami, president of TEPCO Renewable Power, told Reuters last week in an interview.Its parent TEPCO, which has been struggling to restart nuclear power stations after the Fukushima disaster of 2011…

A panel of experts advising Japan's government on a disposal method for radioactive water from the destroyed Fukushima nuclear plant on Friday recommended releasing it into the ocean, a move likely to alarm neighboring countries.The panel under the industry ministry came to the conclusion after narrowing the choice to either releasing the contaminated water into the Pacific Ocean or letting it evaporate - and opted for the former. Based on past practice it is likely the government…

Japanese gas buyers on Wednesday marked the 50th anniversary since the first cargo of liquefied natural gas (LNG) arrived in Japan, now the world's biggest importer of the fuel.The arrival of the cargo on Nov. 4, 1969 helped transform Japan's energy system, which had relied on oil, coal and gas from coal in an era of high growth, before nuclear power was developed.But Japan's energy situation is undergoing huge changes in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011, which…

The United States and China will become the world's biggest liquefied natural gas (LNG) exporters and importers, respectively, in five years, according to projections by the International Energy Agency (IEA).U.S. LNG exports are expected to rocket to over 100 billion cubic meters (bcm) in 2024, dislodging current market leaders Australia and Qatar, Jean-Baptiste Dubreuil, senior natural gas analyst at IEA, said on Tuesday.He was speaking at a presentation sponsored by Columbia…

Japanese marine renewable energy technology compan Eco Marine Power (EMP) is conducting an evaluation trial using the MgBOX fuel cell or air battery in co-operation with Furukawa Battery Co., Ltd. (Furukawa Battery) and several ship owners.These trials will help determine how this innovative emergency battery can be best stored and used on ships. Once this work is completed it is planned to make the MgBOX available for use worldwide on a variety of vessels, offshore platforms & other marine applications.The MgBOX is a small and portable emergency magnesium (Mg) air battery developed by Furukawa Battery. The MgBOX can be stored for long periods and is activated by simply adding fresh or salt water.

Commonwealth LNG has received commitments from European buyers to take almost half of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) from its planned 8.4-million-tonnes-per-year export terminal in Louisiana, Chief Executive Officer Paul Varello said on Wednesday.The Commonwealth project is one of more than 10 LNG export terminals under development or construction in the United States along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico to take advantage of soaring demand for the supercooled fuel amid booming…

Japan's nascent offshore wind industry is expected to increase dramatically over the next ten years, according to energy analysts Wood Mackenzie, who predict that by 2028 the island country will boast upwards of 4 gigawatts (GW) of offshore capacity, a 62-fold increase on 2018 figures.As nuclear power falls out of favour in the aftermath of 2011’s Fukushima Dai’ichi nuclear disaster, Japan has struggled to bring its nuclear reactors back on the grid. Only nine reactors have successfully come online, bringing operational capacity to 9 GW last year.Wood Mackenzie estimates that Japan will face a power generation shortfall of more than 10 GW by 2030…

Duke Energy Corp started to shut the Brunswick nuclear power plant in North Carolina ahead of Hurricane Florence, which is expected to strike the coast near the plant on Friday.Florence is currently a Category 2 storm with maximum sustained winds of 110 miles per hour (177 kph), according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC). On its current track, the storm will hit the coast on Friday with maximum sustained winds of about 105 mph.Duke spokeswoman Mary Kathryn Green said the company was following its procedures and is shutting Unit 1 now and would start shutting Unit 2 at the 1,870-megawatt plant later today. One megawatt can power about 1,000 U.S.

Japanese imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in June fell to the lowest in more than two years as the country's utilities switched on more nuclear reactors that had been shut in the wake of the Fukushima atomic disaster in 2011.Japan has six reactors operating and three others have passed safety inspections and could be operating by October, allowing utilities to switch away from LNG. Spot prices for the fuel rose to three-and-a-half-year high in June.Japan, the world's biggest importer of LNG…

Taiwan is becoming the next battleground for the world's top offshore wind developers as they seek a foothold in Asia for a technology that has been expanding fast in Europe.Taiwan announced results on Monday of its first major offshore wind farm auction that aims to add 3.8 gigawatts (GW) of capacity to its existing network of just 8 megawatts (MW).The island's offshore wind market is expected to expand to 5.5 GW by 2025, and the government aims to invest $23 billion on onshore and offshore wind projects by 2025…

The ailing U.S. coal industry is ramping up its political and legal offensive to win approval for West Coast export terminals that could provide a lifeline to lucrative Asia markets. Coal producers filed two recent lawsuits against governments in Washington state and California challenging local decisions to block port projects on environmental grounds. The industry is also lobbying the Trump administration to override the local bans. The fight reflects the sector’s desperation to boost exports as U.S.

U.S. miner Cloud Peak Energy said on Tuesday it will export coal from a Montana mine for 30 to 40 months to two new power plants in Japan with shipments that could start late next year. The coal from Montana's Spring Creek Mine will be carried by rail to Vancouver and then sent by ship for delivery to two 540-megawatt coal gasification plants in Fukushima Prefecture, Cloud Peak said. JERA Trading Pte Ltd, a trading company based in Singapore, will buy the coal from Cloud Peak. Sales of the coal are expected to reach 1 million metric tonnes in the final contract year, Cloud Peak said.

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (container, tanker, dry-bulk and car carrier divisions) and KOTUG SMIT TOWAGE (KotugSmit) signed long term towage agreements, effective early 2017. The two have agreed upon a long term towage contract for the ports of Rotterdam, Antwerp, Ghent, Terneuzen, Flushing, Bremerhaven, Hamburg, London and Southampton. With this strategic partnership, both organizations aim to boost operational performances by benefiting from smart collaboration and sharing operational knowledge and valuable information.

Egypt seeking to defer up to 25 LNG cargoes this year-trade; talks with trade houses and producers ongoing. Egypt is holding talks with its liquefied natural gas (LNG) suppliers to defer contracted shipments this year and aims to cut back on purchases in 2018, as surging domestic gas production squeezes out demand for costly foreign imports. Cairo's desire for gas self-sufficiency by the end of 2018 bodes ill for traders having to reshuffle LNG out of the country amid concern over the impact on global gas prices if replacement markets for the world's eighth-biggest importer of the super-cooled fuel are not found fast enough. State-run importer EGAS aims to defer dozens of liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargoes due this year, analyst, trade and industry sources say.