Japan and Russia have signed a memorandum on the exchange of information on reactor physics experiments for minor actinoid transmutation for radioactive waste processing and management. The document was signed on 6 September in Vladivostok, Russia, during the Eastern Economic Forum by Rosatom Director-General Alexey Likhachov and Japan Atomic Energy Agency President Toshio Kodama.

The Minerals Council of Australia (MCA) has called on the Australian government to reverse legislation that effectively bans the country from developing a nuclear energy industry. The MCA, which represents the country's exploration, mining and minerals processing industry, has also called for uranium projects to be removed from the definition of "nuclear action" under federal environmental law.

Low-cost abundant natural gas and the growth of renewable energy are accelerating the premature retirement of baseload power plants, particularly coal and nuclear ones, says a report from the US Department of Energy. This, it suggests, is putting the resilience of the USA's electricity grid at risk.

The US government should hold "a structured conversation" with the country's nuclear industry on ways to restore and develop the sector, according to an essay from Mark Hibbs, senior fellow of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace's nuclear policy program.

Nuclear power's share of the UK's electricity generation mix was stable at 21% last year, according to statistics released by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy yesterday. Nuclear generation rose 2% from 70 terawatt hours to 72 TWh in 2016 as nuclear plants had fewer planned and unplanned outages than in 2015.

Japan's cabinet last week approved the draft Basic Concept on Nuclear Energy Use developed by the Japan Atomic Energy Commission. The concept - which will guide the country's future nuclear energy policy - calls for the promotion of the benefits of nuclear energy while minimising the risks of its use.

Nuclear power has an essential role to play in achieving a 'carbon free' future, Rosatom deputy director-general Kirill Komarov said yesterday during the Expo-2017 conference in Astana, Kazakhstan.

Concurrent Technologies Corp plans to launch a Centre for Advanced Nuclear Manufacturing to fill the "critical gap" that exists in providing proven applied advanced manufacturing technologies in the emerging field of small modular reactors and advanced reactors.

The UK government's Department for Exiting the European Union has today published a position paper on nuclear materials and safeguards issues, which the head of the country's Nuclear Industry Association says "demonstrates the complexity" of replicating arrangements with the European Atomic Energy Community.

A new modular manufacturing research and development centre in North West England was officially opened today by the UK's Nuclear Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre. It said the new facility - hosted by shipbuilder Cammell Laird - is the first of a new network of regional supply chain hubs.

The nuclear industry brought more than 9 GWe of new plant on line last year, the largest annual increase in 25 years, according to a new World Nuclear Association report, putting it on track to achieve the Harmony goal of providing 25% of electricity in 2050 using 1000 GWe of new capacity.

The UK's National Audit Office has today published a report on the government's support for Hinkley Point C, which it calls a "risky and expensive" project. The report makes recommendations for how the government now oversees the project and how it agrees deals for other major infrastructure projects.