Since the global outbreak of COVID-19, Sellafield Ltd says it has taken some precautionary actions at its site in north-west England, including the controlled shutdown of the Magnox Reprocessing Plant. The reprocessing plant is approaching its 60th year and is a complex chemical facility designed to process and separate plutonium and uranium.

Turkey's state-owned EUAS International ICC has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the UK's Rolls-Royce to evaluate the technical, economical and legal applicability of small modular reactors. In addition, they will consider the possibility of joint production of such reactors.

There is a low level of awareness among young people in the UK that nuclear power is a low-carbon source of energy, according to research commissioned by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. This shows that the government needs to ensure that nuclear is included in all its communications about low-carbon power and energy sources, IMechE said.

The United Nations' climate talks this year can be a moment where the world comes together to ramp up momentum towards a climate-resilient, zero-carbon economy, COP26 President Designate Alok Sharma told UN Member States at the organisation's headquarters in New York on 6 March. Sharma said it was time to "send out a message of ambition and hope, that decarbonisation is the future, with huge opportunities for those who are willing to act now".

Canadian Nuclear Laboratories and the UK's National Nuclear Laboratory have agreed an action plan to boost collaboration in energy, medical isotopes, waste management and decommissioning, while the Canadian Nuclear Association and the UK's Nuclear Industry Association have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to collaborate in promoting nuclear technologies.

The UK's Nuclear Industry Association has called on the government to produce a financing mechanism that supports investment in new build projects. The government announced in June 2018 that it would review the viability of a Regulated Asset Base model, but it has yet to respond to a public consultation on the Treasury's proposal that took place last year.

Radioactive Waste Management Limited, the company tasked with developing a Geological Disposal Facility in the UK, has set out its approach to GDF site evaluation in England and Wales, following a consultation process. It says that safety, opportunities for communities, and protection of the environment are key considerations as part of its evaluation.

Industrial engineering firm Bilfinger has been awarded a balance of plant contract - worth about GBP58 million (USD76 million) - by EDF Energy. The contract involves the design, pre-fabrication and supply of around 56km of specialised piping systems that support the operation of the Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant, under construction in Somerset, UK.

The UK's Office for Nuclear Regulation and the Environment Agency have completed Step 3 - "overall design, safety case and security arguments review" - in their scrutiny of the UK HPR1000 reactor design. They will now start the fourth and final stage in the Generic Design Assessment process - "detailed design, safety case, and security evidence assessment".

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson today officially launched the next UN climate summit, joined by David Attenborough, the English broadcaster and natural historian, and Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte at an event in central London. Johnson called on all nations to follow the lead the UK took last year in becoming the first country to make a legal commitment to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.

Ministers from the UK's Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy visited Hinkley Point C on 23 January to see progress at the new nuclear power plant. HPC, under construction in Somerset, England, will be the first new nuclear power station to be built in the UK in almost 20 years and will provide about 7% of the country's electricity.

Paul Stein, chief technology officer for Rolls-Royce, told the BBC today the British engineering firm has a target of 2029 for commissioning small modular reactors in the UK. The ambition is part of the country's aim to achieve net zero by 2050, initially using former nuclear power sites in Cumbria and Wales.