Nuclear export

Russian president Vladimir Putin has modified a 1992 presidential decree that bans the export of nuclear technology to countries that do not open their facilities to International Atomic Energy Agency monitoring. Following the modification, exports will be allowed to countries like India, Iran and Cuba, but under “exceptional circumstances” only and on a case by case basis.

Diesel power

CMS Energy Corp has added 32 MWe of distributed power to its Zilwaukee site on the Saginaw River. Using 32 truck-mounted diesel engines the project is to supply peaking power during summer. The $14 million project saw the engines transported from Venzuela’s Margarita Island.

UK refuses gas

Energy minister Helen Liddell has refused to grant permission for the development of two gas-fired generation plants in the UK as they are not in accordance with the stricter power station consents policy. Viridian Power Resources had wanted to develop two 13 MWe stations at the Rockware Glass factories at Knottingly and Doncaster.

Syntroleum

Enron North America has signed a letter of intent with Syntroleum for a 13 per cent stake in the Sweetwater Project that will convert natural gas into products such as lubricants. Enron is to contribute $21 million in equity.

Japan’s nukes

The Ministry of International Trade and Industry has said that the country will continue to develop nuclear generation. A plan to construct 16 to 20 new reactors by 2010 had been largely shelved, but the country still intends to develop its nuclear generation portfolio officials said.

Ansaldo barge

Italy’s Ansaldo is the developer of a barge-mounted power plant for Ghana, not Siemens as stated in the April issue of Modern Power Systems.

UK plant sale

Negotiations on the sale of two UK coal-fired plants to NRG of the US have collapsed without agreement. Brian Count, chief operating officer of National Power’s domestic unit, npower, said the fall in electricity prices in the UK had made the two plants at Blyth less attractive. PowerGen also plans to sell a number of UK plants within the next year but has yet to name either the facilities or potential purchasers

PEM process

Premix subsidiary Quantum Composites has announced the development of a new polymer, Pemtex, for use in the manufacture of fuel cells. The injection moulding process will allow the high volume, low-cost production of the bi-polar plates of Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cells.

Southern buy

The Potomac Electric Power Company, Pepco, has auctioned 5889 MWe of its generation capacity to Southern Company for $2.65 billion. Pending regulatory approvals, the transaction is expected to conclude this year, when Southern will acquire the plants that are mostly located in Maryland and which are fossil-fired.

Smes buy up

American Superconductor has acquired the assets of Integrated Electronics in a cash and shares deal worth $2 million. Integrated Electronics has been one of American Superconductor’s co-developers and suppliers of electronic converters for use in superconducting magnetic energy storage (SMES) systems. The devices convert the stored DC energy into AC power.

BPA fuel cells

IdaTech has delivered the first of 110 fuel cell systems to the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA), reports Dow Jones. Part of IdaCorp Inc, the IdaTech deal is worth $3.5 million and it will make 10 installations over the next three months. The BPA plans to sell the systems by 2003.