French utility EDF has signed an agreement to extend its cooperation with Rosenergoatom, the operator of Russia's civil nuclear power plants. The companies will cooperate in reactor operations, decommissioning and waste management. world-nuclear-news.org Japan's Toshiba Corporation announced today it expects to take an impairment charge of JPY260 billion ($2.3 billion) for part of the goodwill of its US-based nuclear power subsidiary Westinghouse Electric Company. world-nuclear-news.org The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) said Tuesday that environmental impacts of a new commercial reactor at the Bell Bend site in Pennsylvania would not prevent the agency from issuing a Combined License (COL) for the project, although further reviews are in limbo, having been suspended at the request of the designer. nuclearstreet.com South Korea's president said Tuesday that North Korea has almost completed preparations for a fifth nuclear test, and the country has reportedly placed a new midrange missile on standby for an impending launch. ctvnews.ca