u/FewUnderstanding5221

Two separator-superheaters, each 16 metres tall and weighing 95 tonnes, have been installed in their design positions for the innovative lead-cooled BREST-OD-300 fast neutron reactor.

Concrete pouring began in May for the foundation of the turbine and generator for the reactor in Seversk in Russia's Tomsk region, and Rosatom says that construction of the turbine unit foundation will be completed by the end of the year, to allow the installation of the power unit turbine.

https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/articles/key-equipment-installed-in-brest-od-300-turbine-hall

The Viking Astrea is set for delivery in 2027 and follows the launch of the world’s first H2-powered cruise ship earlier this year, the Viking Libra.
The world's second-ever hydrogen-powered cruise ship was launched by Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri on Friday last week at a shipyard in Ancona, on Italy’s Adriatic coast.

Commissioned by cruise line Viking, the Viking Astrea will run on a propulsion system “based partially on liquefied hydrogen and fuel cells”, presumably in addition to a diesel engine.

Like its predecessor the Viking Libra — the world’s first hydrogen-powered cruise ship, set to be delivered by the end of this year — the Viking Astrea will use fuel cell technology manufactured by Fincantieri subsidiary Isotta Fraschini Motori (IFM) capable of producing up to 6MW of power.

The Viking Astrea is set to be delivered in May 2027 and has a gross tonnage of about 54,300 tonnes. It will be capable of carrying up to 998 passengers once operational on its inaugural routes across the Mediterranean and Northern Europe.

After its “float-out” process, the ship will be moved to a separate dock for final construction and interior build-out.

“The float out of the Viking Astrea represents another important milestone for Viking,” said Viking CEO Leah Talactac.

“From the beginning, we have sought thoughtful ways to design more efficient ships, and the Viking Astrea is an important step forward in that ongoing effort.”

Viking had previously ruled out liquefied natural gas (LNG) as an option for reducing emissions from its cruise ships, and instead backed hydrogen fuel cells, which can allow vessels to be operated emissions-free in protected areas such as Norwegian fjords.

https://www.hydrogeninsight.com/transport/italian-shipbuilder-launches-world-s-second-hydrogen-powered-cruise-ship/2-1-2043166

Full-scale site levelling work for the initial phase of the Laiyang nuclear power plant in China's Shandong Province has begun, State Power Investment Corporation announced. The site will eventually house six Guohe One (CAP1400) units.

SPIC said the pre-construction meeting and mobilisation meeting for the site levelling for the main plant area of ​​units 1 and 2 of the Laiyang plant was held on 1 September at the project site. It said this "marked a key step in the construction of the Laiyang nuclear power project and the full-scale commencement of site levelling construction for the first phase of the project".

https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/articles/groundwork-begins-at-new-chinese-plant-site

Nuclear reactors worldwide generated 2,702 TWh of electricity in 2025, beating the previous year's record of 2,667 TWh, according to the World Nuclear Outlook Report, which also calculates that if all national nuclear targets were achieved, total capacity would more than triple by 2050.

https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/articles/fresh-record-set-for-nuclear-generation-in-2025

Key steam turbine components - including high-pressure turbines and valve casings - for Rolls-Royce SMR's first three small modular reactors at the Gwyndod project on Anglesey in North Wales, will be manufactured at Germany-based Siemens Energy's facility in Newcastle, in northeast England.

https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/articles/siemens-energy-to-produce-rolls-royce-smr-turbines-in-the-uk

Firefly Aerospace and Zeno Power Systems have announced a commercial payload agreement that will see a radioisotope heating unit developed to withstand the frigid conditions of the lunar night taken on one of Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost missions to the moon, potentially as soon as 2028.

https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/articles/blue-ghost-to-carry-nuclear-power-source-to-the-moon

The two units at the Czech Republic's Temelín Nuclear Power Plant will operate to 2080 and 2082 respectively, under plans to extend their operating lives to 80 years.

Significant investment and modernisation work will be required to enable the longer-than-originally planned operation of the two VVER-1000 units, whose capacity has increased from 1,000 MWe per unit to 1,086 MWe as a result of upgrade works already carried out.

https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/articles/cez-starts-process-to-extend-temelin-operation-to-80-years

The reactor pressure vessel has been installed at unit 1 of the Lufeng nuclear power plant in China's Guangdong province, China General Nuclear announced.

The Lufeng nuclear power plant is the first nuclear power project in eastern Guangdong Province. The proposed construction of four 1250 MWe CAP1000 reactors (units 1-4) at the Lufeng site was approved by China's National Development and Reform Commission in September 2014. The CAP1000 design is the Chinese version of the Westinghouse AP1000.

https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/articles/reactor-vessel-installed-at-lufeng-unit-1

The construction of a new nuclear power plant in Switzerland would be economically viable, according to a study carried out by the BAK Economics research institute on behalf of the Swiss business federation Economiesuisse.

Currently, Switzerland's four existing nuclear power reactors - two at the Beznau plant and one each at the Gösgen and Leibstadt plants - supply about 36% of the country's electricity and nearly half of its winter electricity. Starting in the late 2030s, they will be decommissioned one by one as they reach the end of their technical service life. The final plant (Leibstadt) is expected to go offline in 2044. Meanwhile, electricity demand is projected to rise by up to one-third by 2050 due to electrification. The resulting winter electricity gap serves as the starting point for this study.

https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/articles/building-new-swiss-nuclear-power-plant-economically-viable-report-says

China-based Weichai Power’s WP15 hydrogen direct-injection engine has qualified under the China VI vehicle emission standard after completing testing at the CATARC Automotive Test Center.

The 14.6-liter heavy-duty engine delivers 600 horsepower and 2,800 N·m of torque while hitting a peak brake thermal efficiency of 46.8%. This evaluation makes it the first heavy-duty hydrogen internal combustion engine globally to meet these specific regulatory benchmarks.

https://interestingengineering.com/transportation/world-first-hydrogen-engine-emission-milestone

A full-scale simulator of the control room for the lead-cooled fast neutron BREST-OD-300 reactor has been commissioned, allowing training for staff before the first-of-a-kind unit's future physical startup.

https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/articles/control-room-simulator-launched-for-lead-cooled-brest-od-300-reactor