Construction and installation work formally started yesterday at the site of unit 2 of the Bushehr nuclear power plant in Iran, Atomproekt, the reactor design subsidiary of Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom, announced today. The first foundation stone for units 2 and 3 of the plant was laid in a ceremony held at the construction site in southern Iran in September last year.

GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy and Advanced Reactor Concepts have signed a memorandum of understanding to collaborate on the development and licensing of a small modular reactor. Each company has so far been developing its own sodium-cooled fast reactor models.

A 3D-printed impeller has been in use in a pump at Slovenia's Krško plant since January. Siemens, which produced the component, said this marks "the first successful commercial installation and continuing safe operation" of such a part in a nuclear power plant.

Hungary can start construction of new nuclear power units at Paks next year as planned, following European Commission approval of commitments it has made to limit distortions of competition. The Commission said today it had concluded that Hungary's financial support for the Paks II project involves state aid, but it could approve this support under EU state aid rules on the basis of these commitments.

Russia has announced the start of commercial operation of its first VVER-1200 reactor, unit 1 of the Novovoronezh II nuclear power plant.

NuGeneration has congratulated Copeland by-election winner Trudy Harrison following last night's result in Whitehaven, as the company moves forward with plans to build a new nuclear power plant at Moorside. NuGen, which is the UK joint venture between Japan's Toshiba Corp and France's Engie, said it would work closely with the newly-elected British member of parliament as it "continues to build a robust business case" for the project.

A group of 28 Vietnamese students have become the first international graduates of a course on nuclear technology at Russia's National Research Nuclear University MEPhI. The six-year course is part of a program supported by Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom.

The two EPR units under construction at the Taishan nuclear power plant in China's Guangdong province will not enter commercial operation until the second half of 2017 and the first half of 2018, respectively. This is some six months later than originally scheduled.

A consortium of small modular reactor developers and customers has issued a policy statement setting out the benefits of public-private partnerships to facilitate the commercialisation and export of US-designed SMRs.

A national archive of records related to the history and development of the UK's civil nuclear industry opened to the public for the first time yesterday. The archive, located in Caithness, Scotland, is funded by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority.

Horizon Nuclear Power, the UK subsidiary of Hitachi Ltd, said today it was joining forces with Exelon Generation as Horizon develops its "expertise and capability" to operate a new nuclear power plant at Wylfa Newydd on the Isle of Anglesey. Exelon Generation operates the biggest fleet of nuclear power plants in the USA, with 19,460 megawatts of capacity from 22 units, eight of which are boiling water reactors. The Wylfa Newydd project will deploy two Advanced Boiling Water Reactors.

The AA Bochvar Research Institute of Inorganic Materials has announced further progress in Russia's endeavour to close the nuclear fuel cycle. A subsidiary of nuclear fuel manufacturer TVEL, VNIINM said yesterday it had completed three state-sponsored contracts for the 'Proryv', or Breakthrough, project.