SRS Happenings

[Topher1]

I thought it may be a good idea to start a thread to report/comment on what's happening at SRS. While SRS may not be an urban site, it is the economic backbone of parts of western SC, and thus is most relevent on an urban site.

The trend I've seen in recent years is that local lawmakers tend to throw out tons of different ideas for the site and very few of them actually catch on, so don't expect all reports/articles to come to fruition.

The following list is some of the more recent proposals and news stories. As I have time, I'll add sources and updates to the list. (Use BugMeNot.com to skip registration screens)

- Hydrogen Research Facility - completed and considering expansion to serve larger role

- MOX Facility - Mixed-oxide something-or-other facility. This is a treatment facility for weapons-grade plutonium, and represents an investment of more than $1.6 billion and 400 new jobs (+1500 temporary jobs during construction) for the area. The latest news is that it continues to be delayed. Apparently it's part of a joint agreement with Russia and will be delayed until they attempt to honor their part of the bargain.

http://chronicle.augusta.com/stories/03310...t_3772666.shtml

- New commercial nuclear reactor for power production.

http://greenvilleonline.com/news/2005/05/2...05052765260.htm

- Energy research park near site. I believe this ties in to the hydrogen facility.

- Regional university research reactor.

http://chronicle.augusta.com/stories/06120...t_4385566.shtml

[Topher1]

Here's some snippets from the article about the research reactor from 6/12. The idea isn't new, but this is the first time it appears to have some momentum and backing, so hopefully this can finally happen.

To see the full article from the Augusta Chronicle: http://chronicle.augusta.com/stories/06120...t_4385566.shtml

Do not post copyrighted material.

[EDPro]

Two groups who are working to encourage South Carolina's "next energy" industry:

www.fuelcellsouth.com

www.engenuitysc.com

Both based out of Columbia, but attempting to be inclusive of SRS and ICAR. Basic reasoning: SRS has expertise in hydrogen (and creating hydrogen by cracking water), USC's National Fuel Cell Center, and ICAR's developing automotive engineering expertise. Believe Engenuity has commissioned a statewide study by a group out of San Fransisco to show how to develop this statewide cluster.

Also, Aiken County is building a spec building to incubate hydrogen based spinout companies. Purely speculuative at this point, but impressive commitment by AIkena dn Edgefield Counties.

There's also a South Carolina Hydrogen Coalition out there that you can probably Google, but I'm not sure how it fits into the whole equation.

[krazeeboi]

WISTV.com reports that Toyota is contributing $2 million towards a project aimed at developing hydrogen fuel storage systems for cars at the new hydrogen research facility near Savannah River National Lab. Great news for the state.

[goodbye]

According to an article in today's Greenville News, the SRS has been eliminated as a candidate for another nuclear power plant by NuStart Energy. The state still has chances for new plants to be built. One would be by Duke, who is hoping to find a site and proceed with an application for a licence by the end of the year. According to state officials, SRS remains a very viable option for a new plant, but for now, it's back to the locker room until the next opportunity to play arrives.

Click here for Entire Article

[GSP Tiger]

It is a bummer to hear about the elimination. Hopefully someone wil take this opportunity. A nuclear plant would really benefit the surrounding areas.

[krazeeboi]

General Motors announced this week that it is cooperating with Savannah River National Laboratory to develop hydrogen-fuel technology for future automobiles. GM is working with the lab to test a hydrogen-storage tank and is also working on a second contract with the laboratory to develop hydrogen-storage materials.

More great news for the state. Such commitments from automotive industry heavyweights shows that they take the hydrogen economy initiative in SC seriously.

[Topher1]

More great news and it sounds like some good momentum... It's funny that you get more SRS info from Columbia news sources than I get from the Augusta Chronicle. All we ever see in that paper is doom and gloom!