Belgium's Council of Ministers has approved EUR558 million (USD646 million) in funding for the Myrrha accelerator-driven research reactor at the Belgian Nuclear Research Centre's site in Mol.

A memorandum of understanding signed between Nucleoeléctrica Argentina SA and Belgium's Nuclear Research Centre aims at extending cooperation on nuclear safety.

Belgium's nuclear power plant operator Electrabel has revised the timetable for scheduled maintenance outages at three of its reactors to check for degradation of concrete in the ceilings of buildings housing back-up safety-related equipment. The extended outages will cost the company some EUR250 million (USD290 million).

Canada-based L3 MAPPS has been awarded a contract to upgrade the full scope operator training simulator it supplied for unit 1 of Belgium's Tihange nuclear power plant. Meanwhile, USA-based GSE Systems has been contracted to upgrade and provide simulators to Chinese reactors.

The Belgian government has approved a new "energy pact" that maintains the previous policy to phase out nuclear energy in the country by 2025. A draft bill on the new federal energy strategy will be submitted to the cabinet by the end of May.

An International Atomic Energy Agency team of nuclear safety experts has today completed a seven-day mission to review safety at the Belgian Research Reactor 2 (BR2). Requested by Belgium's regulatory body, the Federal Agency for Nuclear Control, the mission focused on ageing management and continued safe operation.

The planned Belgian state guarantee for nuclear operators that do not find sufficient civil liability coverage on private insurance markets does not involve state aid, the European Commission has concluded. The commission said the guarantee would improve compensation for potential victims without granting any advantage to operators.

More cooperation agreements and contracts have been signed by Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom and its subsidiaries during the IX AtomExpo International Forum it is hosting this week in Moscow. The latest agreements, with Asian and European companies, cover collaboration in a wide range of nuclear-related areas and beyond.

No new so-called hydrogen 'flakes' have been found in the reactor vessels of Belgium's Tihange 2 and Doel 3, a comparison of inspections carried out recently with those conducted in 2014 has shown. The country's nuclear regulator said there has also been no growth of previously detected flakes.

The European Commission has approved Belgian plans to support the long-term operation of three nuclear reactors after finding measures to compensate operators Engie-Electrabel and EDF Belgium are in line with European Union rules on state aid.

Belgium will only be able to meet its climate goals while achieving long-term electricity price stability and security of supply if it uses a combination of nuclear and renewable energy, according to a new study by PwC Enterprise Advisory.

A ceremony was held yesterday to inaugurate the new full-scope operator training simulator at unit 1 of the Tihange nuclear power plant in Belgium. The simulator was supplied by Canada-based L-3 MAPPS.