Goodperson
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First sign NPT then get Uranium: Australia to India
- Thread starter Spring Onion
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. Remember countries will have valid reasons for reservations and they were convinced to support waiver after they were satisfied with measures.
nitesh
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guys see here, if we buy equipment and don't get fuel then all these talks are useless. i feel the opposition shown by some countries are more of keeping the domestic compulsions in mind but eventually everything will fall in place
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601091&sid=a7nK7VDhIF5o&refer=india
India to Start Talks This Month for Reactors From Areva, GE
By Archana Chaudhary
Sept. 8 (Bloomberg) -- Nuclear Power Corp., India's state- run monopoly, will begin talks this month with Areva SA and General Electric Co. while it waits for the U.S. Congress to clear a deal that allows the South Asian nation to buy atomic technology and fuel.
Nuclear Power plans to buy more than $14 billion of equipment in 2009 from four companies including Areva, General Electric, Rosatom and Westinghouse Electric Co., Chairman Shreyans Kumar Jain said today in a telephone interview in Mumbai.
The orders will help cut power shortages in the world's second-fastest growing major economy and end India's 34-year nuclear isolation. The country on Sept. 6 won the right to buy atomic technology, equipment and fuel from the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group as part of a U.S.-proposed deal.
``The exploratory discussions with the Russians and French can now become more focused. We can start finding partners and source fuel for some of our existing plants,'' Jain said. ``We can now start serious negotiations with all four companies.''
General Electric, based in Fairfield, Connecticut, Paris- based Areva, Toshiba Corp.'s Westinghouse and Rosatom may each win contracts valued at more than $3.5 billion, to supply two reactors that can generate more than 1,000 megawatts apiece, Jain said. The orders will be part of a $40 billion reactor-building program, he said.
`Nuclear Parks'
Nuclear Power plans to set up plants at four sites, he said. The nation's monopoly atomic-power generator plans to build ``nuclear parks'' housing reactors capable of generating as much as 8,000 megawatts at a single location.
The orders will form the first phase of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's plan to build 40,000 megawatts of nuclear capacity by 2020, equivalent to a third of current generation. India needs to add to the 3 percent of electricity that comes from Russian-designed reactors to meet soaring energy needs and reduce its reliance on coal-fired power plants.
During peak hours, India's power supply falls 14.8 percent short of demand, according to the government. Lack of infrastructure, especially power, has eroded 2 percentage points off the country's growth, according to the Asian Development Bank. About 400 million people, or a third of the population, have no access to electricity, according to the United Nations.
India signed a similar civilian nuclear agreement with Russia in January last year. Russia is helping India build two 1,000-megawatt light water reactors at the Kudankulam nuclear power station in the southern state of Tamil Nadu.
Nuclear Power plans to buy the AP1000 series of reactors from Monroeville, Pennsylvania-based Westinghouse, the `ABWR' series from General Electric, Areva's serial designs for the 1,000 megawatt plants and the Russian VVR 1,000 units, Jain said.
To contact the reporter on this story: Archana Chaudhary in Mumbai at achaudhary2@bloomberg.net.
nitesh
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Marshal
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That means the opposition is coocking something.......Probably pressure from Uncle sam might do the job for India.....anyway Australia is not the only country which has the urenium reserve......kazakhstan has also got large reserve of Yellow cake and we have developed very good relationship with them over the years......
nitesh
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guys check this:
IndianExpress.com :: Uranium: India looks to Canada, Kazakhstan
MUMBAI, SEPTEMBER 8: With Australia continuing to act pricey about exporting uranium to India despite the green signal from the NSG, India’s nuclear establishment has started setting its sights on other sources. Canada and Kazakhstan are emerging as possible key suppliers.
Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith arrives in Chennai on Monday night for a week-long visit to India which will also take him to Hyderabad before he holds talks in Delhi on Thursday and Friday.
However, he said that Canberra’s ban on selling uranium to New Delhi would continue as it had not signed the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. But Australia supported the NSG waiver last week because of the strategic significance it had for India and US, he added.
“There is too much politics over uranium in Australia,” one official said, referring to Smith’s Labour party government reversing a decision by the previous Liberal-National coalition to waive the NPT requirement. “We have to look at other sources and we have some countries in mind. Now that the waiver is in place we can start making a shortlist and open negotiations.”
Although Australia has the world’s largest reserves of uranium, Canada produces the most and has a 23 per cent global share while Australia has 21 per cent followed by Kazakhstan at 16 per cent, nuclear experts said. Canada, which supplied CIRUS, India’s first heavy water reactor, about half a century ago, is expected to be a key player in India’s new nuclear market. It will not only be tapped for its CANDU reactors that allow the breeding of thorium directly but also for uranium supplies, sources said.
However, it is Kazakhstan that has emerged as a dark horse as little has been known about the country’s strength in uranium production. It produced about 6,600 tonnes of uranium in 2007 compared to about 9,500 by Canada and 8,600 by Australia. It plans to raise production to 15,000 tonnes by 2010 and 30,000 by 2018 to become the world’s largest producer. India’s estimated production in 2007, on the other hand, was a measly 270 tonnes.
Russia, Japan and China have already rushed to build ties with the decade-old Kazatomprom, Kazakhstan’s state-owned nuclear company, while global nuclear majors such as Areva, Westinghouse, Sumitomo and Kansai are involved in uranium mining and other aspects of the fuel cycle.
While New Delhi’s political and trade relations with Astana have been excellent, there was no point until now to try and open formal talks over uranium supplies as Kazakhstan is not only a NSG member but is also a signatory of the NPT, sources said. “It has always been at the back of our mind but we can now go ahead and do it,” one top official said.
Niger and Namibia are also likely to be on a shortlist of countries that New Delhi plans to tap.
IndianExpress.com :: Uranium: India looks to Canada, Kazakhstan
MUMBAI, SEPTEMBER 8: With Australia continuing to act pricey about exporting uranium to India despite the green signal from the NSG, India’s nuclear establishment has started setting its sights on other sources. Canada and Kazakhstan are emerging as possible key suppliers.
Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith arrives in Chennai on Monday night for a week-long visit to India which will also take him to Hyderabad before he holds talks in Delhi on Thursday and Friday.
However, he said that Canberra’s ban on selling uranium to New Delhi would continue as it had not signed the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. But Australia supported the NSG waiver last week because of the strategic significance it had for India and US, he added.
“There is too much politics over uranium in Australia,” one official said, referring to Smith’s Labour party government reversing a decision by the previous Liberal-National coalition to waive the NPT requirement. “We have to look at other sources and we have some countries in mind. Now that the waiver is in place we can start making a shortlist and open negotiations.”
Although Australia has the world’s largest reserves of uranium, Canada produces the most and has a 23 per cent global share while Australia has 21 per cent followed by Kazakhstan at 16 per cent, nuclear experts said. Canada, which supplied CIRUS, India’s first heavy water reactor, about half a century ago, is expected to be a key player in India’s new nuclear market. It will not only be tapped for its CANDU reactors that allow the breeding of thorium directly but also for uranium supplies, sources said.
However, it is Kazakhstan that has emerged as a dark horse as little has been known about the country’s strength in uranium production. It produced about 6,600 tonnes of uranium in 2007 compared to about 9,500 by Canada and 8,600 by Australia. It plans to raise production to 15,000 tonnes by 2010 and 30,000 by 2018 to become the world’s largest producer. India’s estimated production in 2007, on the other hand, was a measly 270 tonnes.
Russia, Japan and China have already rushed to build ties with the decade-old Kazatomprom, Kazakhstan’s state-owned nuclear company, while global nuclear majors such as Areva, Westinghouse, Sumitomo and Kansai are involved in uranium mining and other aspects of the fuel cycle.
While New Delhi’s political and trade relations with Astana have been excellent, there was no point until now to try and open formal talks over uranium supplies as Kazakhstan is not only a NSG member but is also a signatory of the NPT, sources said. “It has always been at the back of our mind but we can now go ahead and do it,” one top official said.
Niger and Namibia are also likely to be on a shortlist of countries that New Delhi plans to tap.
Marshal
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Rudd to face tough time over not supplying uranium to India
Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is likely to face tough time in maintaining his stand on not allowing uranium sales to India especially after his government favoured India's waiver at the Nuclear Supplier Group meet at Vienna.
While, the Australian government still maintains its stance on not selling uranium to India, until Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's Government joins the NPT treaty, The Age reported today,"This stance may sound like a grand contradiction."
Writing in the paper Robert Ayson, Chief Investigator of Australian Nuclear Choices Reasearch Council Project said, this stand would be difficult for the Rudd governmnet to keep up for long as US-India deal would help put in place defacto NPT treaty that is being built around India as it is welcomed as a nearly official member of the nuclear club.
He said India will also have a separate safeguard arrangement with IAEA and has also agreed to separate its military and civilian nuclear facilities.
Keeping in view that India's signing NPT is impossible as the treaty does not recognise India as a nuclear weapon state and because New Delhi is unlikely to disarm anytime soon, "This might be the best chance we get," Ayson felt.
The paper also said that the Rudd governmnet would come under increasing pressure from the opposition as the previous Howard government during its last months had advocated uranium sales to India.
The opposition coaltion is now accusing the new government of missing a fine chance to improve relationship with India.
The report said Rudd government had hard choices to make as there "May be some understandable reasons for the Rudd Government's hesitancy on uranium sales, at least for the time being."
The paper said the reason for the reluctance could come from the Australian Labour Party's campaign in the election on the platform that the country should retain its existing policy to sell uranium only to NPT countries.
"The second reason is party political reality: Australia's involvement in uranium mining and exportation has long been a sensitive issue for the ALP. Sales to India might suggest that there are now few obstacles to the expansion of an industry that some state governments would oppose," it further added.
"Selling uranium to India would require Rudd to stare down opponents within his own party, especially at the state level. He would get there, but it could be an ugly fight," it added.
The report also found the process as one of the reason stating that US-India nuclear co-operation agreement still has to get approval from American Senate which, like all other US political institutions, is now preoccupied by November elections.
"Senate approval is the last piece of a puzzle. The difficult steps along the way included Singh Government's desperate, but eventually successful, efforts to secure support from a fractured Indian parliament. They also included India's nuclear waiver, which a few countries (including New Zealand) resisted to the bitter end.
"Given all these obstacles, Rudd Government could have been excused for thinking that the process would seize up entirely before it became a live question for Australia," it said.
But Ayson felt that the direct proliferation dangers involved in selling uranium to India are few and far between. There is every chance that India would use Australian uranium only to fuel its civilian power supply as its rapidly growing economy demands additional energy sources.
Also, India is extremely unlikely to pass on nuclear material to potential proliferators. The report said Rudd Government's nod to uranium sale would represent Australia's ultimate endorsement of India's decision to challenge the non-proliferation regime.
Though favouring India at NSG made Australia's stand flexible, anything more might just weaken the Rudd Government's case that it is an especially strong supporter of NPT treaty, it said adding it would risk the criticism that while India may be an otherwise responsible possessor of nuclear weapons, the stage has been set for other states to join the queue.
Australia's co-operation on India's nuclear waiver is already pushing the boundaries because the US deal is not universally regarded as good for nuclear non-proliferation.
"A change in policy on uranium sales, at least for now, would almost definitely be a bridge too far. But the issue will resurface and it may get harder and harder for the Rudd Government to keep saying no," the report said.
outlookindia.com | wired
Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is likely to face tough time in maintaining his stand on not allowing uranium sales to India especially after his government favoured India's waiver at the Nuclear Supplier Group meet at Vienna.
While, the Australian government still maintains its stance on not selling uranium to India, until Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's Government joins the NPT treaty, The Age reported today,"This stance may sound like a grand contradiction."
Writing in the paper Robert Ayson, Chief Investigator of Australian Nuclear Choices Reasearch Council Project said, this stand would be difficult for the Rudd governmnet to keep up for long as US-India deal would help put in place defacto NPT treaty that is being built around India as it is welcomed as a nearly official member of the nuclear club.
He said India will also have a separate safeguard arrangement with IAEA and has also agreed to separate its military and civilian nuclear facilities.
Keeping in view that India's signing NPT is impossible as the treaty does not recognise India as a nuclear weapon state and because New Delhi is unlikely to disarm anytime soon, "This might be the best chance we get," Ayson felt.
The paper also said that the Rudd governmnet would come under increasing pressure from the opposition as the previous Howard government during its last months had advocated uranium sales to India.
The opposition coaltion is now accusing the new government of missing a fine chance to improve relationship with India.
The report said Rudd government had hard choices to make as there "May be some understandable reasons for the Rudd Government's hesitancy on uranium sales, at least for the time being."
The paper said the reason for the reluctance could come from the Australian Labour Party's campaign in the election on the platform that the country should retain its existing policy to sell uranium only to NPT countries.
"The second reason is party political reality: Australia's involvement in uranium mining and exportation has long been a sensitive issue for the ALP. Sales to India might suggest that there are now few obstacles to the expansion of an industry that some state governments would oppose," it further added.
"Selling uranium to India would require Rudd to stare down opponents within his own party, especially at the state level. He would get there, but it could be an ugly fight," it added.
The report also found the process as one of the reason stating that US-India nuclear co-operation agreement still has to get approval from American Senate which, like all other US political institutions, is now preoccupied by November elections.
"Senate approval is the last piece of a puzzle. The difficult steps along the way included Singh Government's desperate, but eventually successful, efforts to secure support from a fractured Indian parliament. They also included India's nuclear waiver, which a few countries (including New Zealand) resisted to the bitter end.
"Given all these obstacles, Rudd Government could have been excused for thinking that the process would seize up entirely before it became a live question for Australia," it said.
But Ayson felt that the direct proliferation dangers involved in selling uranium to India are few and far between. There is every chance that India would use Australian uranium only to fuel its civilian power supply as its rapidly growing economy demands additional energy sources.
Also, India is extremely unlikely to pass on nuclear material to potential proliferators. The report said Rudd Government's nod to uranium sale would represent Australia's ultimate endorsement of India's decision to challenge the non-proliferation regime.
Though favouring India at NSG made Australia's stand flexible, anything more might just weaken the Rudd Government's case that it is an especially strong supporter of NPT treaty, it said adding it would risk the criticism that while India may be an otherwise responsible possessor of nuclear weapons, the stage has been set for other states to join the queue.
Australia's co-operation on India's nuclear waiver is already pushing the boundaries because the US deal is not universally regarded as good for nuclear non-proliferation.
"A change in policy on uranium sales, at least for now, would almost definitely be a bridge too far. But the issue will resurface and it may get harder and harder for the Rudd Government to keep saying no," the report said.
outlookindia.com | wired
Spring Onion
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Australia denies China blocking uranium supply to India
13 Sep 2008, 0440 hrs IST,AFP
CANBERRA: Australia's Foreign Minister Stephen Smith on Friday shot down claims that China is pressing Canberra not to supply India with uranium for nuclear fuel.
Australia has said it will not sell yellowcake to India unless it signs the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), even though the United States has signed a deal to share nuclear technology with India.
Smith, who is in India, said the suggestion that China was blocking Australian uranium sales to India had been put to him during his visit.
"There is certainly no basis for it. It hasn't been expressed to me by the Indian government or Indian officials," Smith said.
"I have had that question raised of me at a public speech that I gave at one of the Indian think-tanks, and I made this point: people should not assume that just because the prime minister can speak Mandarin that in anyway influences our foreign policy approach."
Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is a Mandarin-speaking Sinophile who has been warmly received during his visits to China.
Smith however made it clear that Canberra would not change its mind about refusing to export uranium to countries such as India that have not signed the NPT.
"Our decision about uranium is as a result of a long-standing policy position of the Labor Party that we don't export uranium to a country that is not a party to the non-proliferation treaty," he said. "
It's not aimed at India, it's just a long-standing position which underpins and underlines our support of non-proliferation."
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...nium_supply_to_India_/articleshow/3478203.cms
13 Sep 2008, 0440 hrs IST,AFP
CANBERRA: Australia's Foreign Minister Stephen Smith on Friday shot down claims that China is pressing Canberra not to supply India with uranium for nuclear fuel.
Australia has said it will not sell yellowcake to India unless it signs the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), even though the United States has signed a deal to share nuclear technology with India.
Smith, who is in India, said the suggestion that China was blocking Australian uranium sales to India had been put to him during his visit.
"There is certainly no basis for it. It hasn't been expressed to me by the Indian government or Indian officials," Smith said.
"I have had that question raised of me at a public speech that I gave at one of the Indian think-tanks, and I made this point: people should not assume that just because the prime minister can speak Mandarin that in anyway influences our foreign policy approach."
Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is a Mandarin-speaking Sinophile who has been warmly received during his visits to China.
Smith however made it clear that Canberra would not change its mind about refusing to export uranium to countries such as India that have not signed the NPT.
"Our decision about uranium is as a result of a long-standing policy position of the Labor Party that we don't export uranium to a country that is not a party to the non-proliferation treaty," he said. "
It's not aimed at India, it's just a long-standing position which underpins and underlines our support of non-proliferation."
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...nium_supply_to_India_/articleshow/3478203.cms
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