Swiss utility Alpiq estimates it will face economic damages of some CHF2.5 billion ($2.5 billion) if voters back an initiative calling for the early shutdown of the country’s nuclear power plants in a referendum later this month. However, it says even if the early phase-out is rejected, it cannot operate its reactors economically under current market conditions. world-nuclear-news.org

GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GEH) and Southern Nuclear are to collaborate on the development and licensing of fast reactors including GEH’s Prism sodium-cooled fast reactor, the companies announced yesterday. world-nuclear-news.org

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) said Monday it had begun a special inspection of the Grand Gulf Nuclear Station in Port Gibson, Mississippi, to look into operator responses to recent shut downs. nuclearstreet.com

Rosatom has announced that the Unit 4 reactor at the Beloyarsk nuclear power plant in Zarechny in central Russia, has entered into commercial status, after attaining 100 percent power in mid-August. The unit is a BN-800 fast neutron reactor. Outranking its sister-reactor, Beloyarsk Unit 3, it is now the most powerful such reactor in service. nuclearstreet.com