Japan crisis will redefine the future for nuclear power



The Fukushima disaster is still unfolding, but it now appears the crisis could end up rivalling Chernobyl as a category 7, the highest degree. But even before the scientific facts are known, lessons can already be drawn from the accident in the context of the current political upheaval in the Middle East.

The end of nuclear power is nowhere in sight; nuclear power is here to stay. There are more than 400 operating reactors in the world, each with a planned operating timespan of at least 40 years. No responsible government will want to squander that investment.

Those who refer to a "pause" do it largely to appease worried citizens. Even countries which claim that they will now prepare their exit from the nuclear era will continue to rely on nuclear reactors for several decades.

Although it provides only slightly more than 15 per cent of all electricity that's generated globally, nuclear power will remain a part of the energy mix for most modern countries. No other source can provide reliable electricity generation for major urban and industrial centres without carbon emissions, particularly in the context of dwindling oil and gas reserves.

That said, nuclear safety standards will never be the same again. The causes of Japan's catastrophe are now beginning to appear: take an old reactor, add a security standard that wasn't adapted to a rare event - not so much the earthquake, but the tsunami that followed - and a lack of suitable controls or oversight of safety inspections, and you have a recipe for disaster. Indeed, one of the major public discoveries of the catastrophe was the dire state of the Japanese nuclear industry, whose safety culture was found wanting to say the least.

From now on, plant operators are going to face much more governmental and public scrutiny than has been the case. Old reactors such as Fukushima will no longer be easily maintained in service. After two major accidents in 25 years, many will demand that the threshold of the maximum acceptable risk in case of flooding, earthquakes or tsunamis be significantly raised.

Third-generation reactors such as Areva's EPR and Toshiba's AP1000 - that are more expensive than others but include higher built-in safety standards - will appear more attractive to potential customers. A premium will be placed on the quality of training of engineers and technicians. And plans for international assistance in case of a serious accident will be revised; the International Atomic Energy Agency will certainly have a role here.

Nuclear power plants can no longer be a matter of "prestige" for operating nations. Among the tens of countries which have announced their interest for nuclear power, Iran has been one of the pioneers. But its public discourse, which has centred on nuclear energy a symbol of prestige and modernity, will now fall on deaf ears. And the fears expressed by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in December 2006 of an accident at the Bushehr plant will certainly be voiced again.

Moreover, the Fukushima accident occurred in the midst of the most profound political changes in the Middle East for several decades. Those changes will undoubtedly affect the nuclear energy plans in the region.

For one, new regimes in Egypt and Tunisia may not have the priority of confirming or continuing on with costly programmes, especially given the current economic crisis. Entry into the nuclear club requires significant amounts of capital. Possible increases in price due to even more stringent security and safety standards will make entry costs even higher.

In addition, while applauded by western countries, the Arab revolutions have not reassured nuclear suppliers who worry about the future stability of their customers. As a result, for the foreseeable future, only the most committed, stable and richest countries will be able to join that club.

Nuclear proliferation risks are changing, too. The slowing down of the nuclear renaissance is good news for those who worry about proliferation risks; for instance, from now on, it will be much more difficult to launch a civilian programme as a disguise for a military one. But the proliferation landscape is also changing rapidly due to the political turmoil in the Middle East.

Within the region, Egypt is often rightly mentioned as a possible candidate for walking in Iran's nuclear footsteps. But Egypt's new regime may be less obsessed with Iran's nuclear programme than former president Hosni Mubarak was - or at least less committed to countering Iranian influence in the region.

As a result, the temptation to go for a military nuclear option if the Islamic Republic was to get the bomb may be less pronounced in a new context than it was until last year.

The bad news is that the international community's intervention against the Libyan regime may also strengthen Iran's determination to go for the bomb. Over the years, Col Qaddafi reportedly concluded that the only way to protect yourself against an international military intervention was to have nuclear weapons (although he never succeeded in acquiring one). No doubt that many within Iran's leadership, and maybe elsewhere, are now thinking along the same lines.

Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia's Prince Turki al Faisal has given us pause for thought by declaring, during a recent visit to Abu Dhabi, that the GCC could consider creating its own nuclear weapons programme if efforts to derail Iran's fails. The global nuclear landscape is changing fast indeed.

Bruno Tertrais is a senior research fellow at the Fondation pour la Recherche Stratégique in France

How to protect yourself when air quality drops

Install an air filter in your home.

Close your windows and turn on the AC.

Shower or bath after being outside.

Wear a face mask.

Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.

If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.

MATCH INFO

Aston Villa 1 (Konsa 63')

Sheffield United 0

Red card: Jon Egan (Sheffield United)

 

COMPANY PROFILE

Company: Bidzi

● Started: 2024

● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid

● Based: Dubai, UAE

● Industry: M&A

● Funding size: Bootstrapped

● No of employees: Nine

APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)

Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits

Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine

Storage: 128/256/512GB

Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4

Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps

Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID

Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight

In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter

Price: From Dh2,099

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The Perfect Couple

Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor

Creator: Jenna Lamia

Rating: 3/5

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6 UNDERGROUND

Director: Michael Bay

Stars: Ryan Reynolds, Adria Arjona, Dave Franco

2.5 / 5 stars

COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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Call of Duty: Black Ops 6

Developer: Treyarch, Raven Software
Publisher:  Activision
Console: PlayStation 4 & 5, Windows, Xbox One & Series X/S
Rating: 3.5/5

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Tree of Hell

Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla

Director: Raed Zeno

Rating: 4/5

De De Pyaar De

Produced: Luv Films, YRF Films
Directed: Akiv Ali
Cast: Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Rakul Preet Singh, Jimmy Sheirgill, Jaaved Jaffrey
Rating: 3.5/5 stars

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AUSTRALIA SQUADS

ODI squad: Aaron Finch (captain), Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Marnus Labuschagne, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa

Twenty20 squad: Aaron Finch (captain), Sean Abbott, Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa

Company%20profile
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Turkish Ladies

Various artists, Sony Music Turkey 

RESULT

Manchester City 1 Sheffield United 0
Man City:
Jesus (9')

Sweet%20Tooth
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Thank You for Banking with Us

Director: Laila Abbas

Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum

Rating: 4/5

A%20QUIET%20PLACE
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Jigra
Director: Vasan Bala
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
Rated: 3.5/5

Paris Can Wait
Dir: Eleanor Coppola
Starring: Alec Baldwin, Diane Lane, Arnaud Viard
Two stars

MATCH INFO

Uefa Champions League final:

Who: Real Madrid v Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
When: Saturday, May 26, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports

The biog

Name: Capt Shadia Khasif

Position: Head of the Criminal Registration Department at Hatta police

Family: Five sons and three daughters

The first female investigator in Hatta.

Role Model: Father

She believes that there is a solution to every problem

 

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
 
Started: 2020
 
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
 
Based: Dubai, UAE
 
Sector: Entertainment 
 
Number of staff: 210 
 
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
MATCH INFO

Manchester City 0

Wolves 2 (Traore 80', 90 4')

THE DETAILS

Director: Milan Jhaveri
Producer: Emmay Entertainment and T-Series
Cast: John Abraham, Manoj Bajpayee
Rating: 2/5

Your rights as an employee

The government has taken an increasingly tough line against companies that fail to pay employees on time. Three years ago, the Cabinet passed a decree allowing the government to halt the granting of work permits to companies with wage backlogs.

The new measures passed by the Cabinet in 2016 were an update to the Wage Protection System, which is in place to track whether a company pays its employees on time or not.

If wages are 10 days late, the new measures kick in and the company is alerted it is in breach of labour rules. If wages remain unpaid for a total of 16 days, the authorities can cancel work permits, effectively shutting off operations. Fines of up to Dh5,000 per unpaid employee follow after 60 days.

Despite those measures, late payments remain an issue, particularly in the construction sector. Smaller contractors, such as electrical, plumbing and fit-out businesses, often blame the bigger companies that hire them for wages being late.

The authorities have urged employees to report their companies at the labour ministry or Tawafuq service centres — there are 15 in Abu Dhabi.

THE BIO

Favourite author - Paulo Coelho 

Favourite holiday destination - Cuba 

New York Times or Jordan Times? NYT is a school and JT was my practice field

Role model - My Grandfather 

Dream interviewee - Che Guevara

Joker: Folie a Deux

Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson

Director: Todd Phillips 

Rating: 2/5

Jebel Ali Dragons 26 Bahrain 23

Dragons
Tries: Hayes, Richards, Cooper
Cons: Love
Pens: Love 3

Bahrain
Tries: Kenny, Crombie, Tantoh
Cons: Phillips
Pens: Phillips 2

Seemar’s top six for the Dubai World Cup Carnival:

1. Reynaldothewizard
2. North America
3. Raven’s Corner
4. Hawkesbury
5. New Maharajah
6. Secret Ambition

COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Avengers: Endgame

Directors: Anthony Russo, Joe Russo

Starring: Robert Downey Jr, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Chris Hemsworth, Josh Brolin

4/5 stars 

FIXTURES

Thu Mar 15 – West Indies v Afghanistan, UAE v Scotland
Fri Mar 16 – Ireland v Zimbabwe
Sun Mar 18 – Ireland v Scotland
Mon Mar 19 – West Indies v Zimbabwe
Tue Mar 20 – UAE v Afghanistan
Wed Mar 21 – West Indies v Scotland
Thu Mar 22 – UAE v Zimbabwe
Fri Mar 23 – Ireland v Afghanistan

The top two teams qualify for the World Cup

Classification matches 
The top-placed side out of Papua New Guinea, Hong Kong or Nepal will be granted one-day international status. UAE and Scotland have already won ODI status, having qualified for the Super Six.

Thu Mar 15 – Netherlands v Hong Kong, PNG v Nepal
Sat Mar 17 – 7th-8th place playoff, 9th-10th place play-off