Rosenergoatom has reportedly postponed construction of the BN-1200 sodium-cooled fast neutron reactor at the Beloyarsk nuclear power plant "indefinitely" on the need to improve fuel for the reactor and amid speculation about the cost-effectiveness of the project.

Fabrication of the central solenoid of the Iter fusion project has been started by the USA's General Atomics. The solenoid - due for delivery in 2019 - will be one of the largest superconducting electromagnets ever built.

Government and company officials yesterday launched construction of Turkey's first nuclear power plant. The Russian-designed Akkuyu plant in Mersin, on the Mediterranean coast, is the first of three nuclear power plants the country plans to build to help boost its economy and reduce its dependence on fossil fuel imports.

Areva has signed two agreements with Indian companies in preparation for the project to construct six EPR units at Jaitapur in Maharashtra state. The agreements were signed during a visit to Paris by Indian prime minister Narendra Modi.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has approved parliament's ratification of an intergovernmental agreement with Japan to build a nuclear power plant at Sinop, according to a statement on his website yesterday.

Coquí RadioPharmaceuticals Corp has completed the schematic design of its $330 million medical isotope production facility to be built in Alachua, Florida. Coquí Pharma will soon enter the detailed design phase as it readies to submit its construction licence application to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission by the end of 2015.

EDF Energy says it has almost completed early site preparation works for the planned Hinkley Point C project. However, pending a final investment decision, some 400 jobs at the site are at risk.

The reactor vessel of Shin Hanul unit 2 has been installed within the reactor building, marking a major step in the construction of the second Korean-designed Advanced Pressurised Reactor-1400 (APR-1400) being built at the site.

Anomalies have been identified in the composition of the steel in certain parts of the reactor vessel of the EPR under construction at Flamanville, Areva has informed the French nuclear regulator. Further tests are planned to show the extent and effect of the areas of the vessel showing higher carbon concentrations.

NuScale Power has completed fabrication and assembly of a full-scale upper module mock-up of its NuScale small modular reactor.

China has resumed construction of new nuclear power plant projects after a hiatus of 15 months. Construction of the fifth unit of the Hongyanhe plant in Liaoning province began yesterday.

The reactor pressure vessel has been installed at unit 2 of the Novovoronezh II nuclear power plant, Russian architect-engineer AtomEnergoProekt said today. Installation was carried out in two stages.