— The chair of UW-Madison’s Department of Engineering Physics says nuclear energy is at a “pivot point” as development progresses on new types of reactors.
Paul Wilson spoke yesterday during a Madison event hosted by the Customers First Coalition focused on new nuclear technologies. He highlighted the potential for small modular reactors, which are being advanced by a Portland company called NuScale Power.
He explained the “conventional wisdom” in the nuclear field has been that bigger projects produce electricity more cheaply.
“And that’s still true to a large extent, except that we’ve now grown to a size where the initial capital outlay is so large compared to what utilities can afford,” he said. “So now we’ve turned around and said, ‘Well maybe it’s not just the cost of electricity that matters. Maybe it’s the cost of the investment that matters.’”
Because the NuScale modular reactors are smaller, that means the initial investment required is much lower. Plus, a utility or energy cooperative can build its first reactor, begin generating revenue from that installation, and use those funds to pay for adding others within a single facility, he noted.
“The individual components are of a scale that they can be built in a factory and shipped to the site, so there’s much less onsite work to be done, and it’s more of an assembly operation than a construction operation,” he said. “That has important impacts for some of the job opportunities. It may mean that we want to be positioning Wisconsin to be a place where we have those factories.”
Also during yesterday’s event, the head of generation and power supply for Dairyland Power Cooperative said the organization is exploring the possibility of using small modular reactors to generate energy for its customers.
Jeremy Browning said the La Crosse-based co-op is committed to energy safety, reliability and affordability, and sees this new technology as a “viable option” that can meet those standards. Dairyland plans to conduct a site study this year to evaluate costs and viability.
“Your objective there is to find a place that is the most economically viable and safe to build the facility,” he said. “There’s a lot of things that go into the construction of one of these facilities. If you select the wrong place, you can be talking a lot more cost.”
Both Browning and Wilson spoke to the uncertainty around operating costs for these smaller reactors, but their modular design could help speed up the process of improvement.
Wilson said a “very well-built” small modular reactor could be slightly more expensive to operate than a very large reactor, noting “certainly the first ones will be.”
“One of the real opportunities, though, is the opportunity of learning by doing it many times … A company can build one, learn from it, build the next one. And there’s a much better opportunity of learning by doing,” he said.
Watch the full event here: https://wiseye.org/2023/04/13/customers-first-coalition-the-nuclear-option-new-technologies-new-opportunities-for-wisconsin/
— This week’s episode of “WisBusiness: the Podcast” is with Nick Kees, an attorney with Godfrey & Kahn in Milwaukee.
Kees, a member of the law firm’s Intellectual Property Practice Group, discusses an event being put on next week by the Wisconsin District Export Council. The STOPfakes Roadshow will be held Tuesday at the Harley-Davidson University in Milwaukee.
He says the event aims to help attendees “protect their ideas and their intellectual property — their concepts, their copyrights.” With a focus on assisting entrepreneurs and startup companies, independent creators and inventors, the roadshow will feature remarks by private sector speakers and government agency representatives that specialize in IP issues.
“Really a wide-ranging group of people here, and it’s all compressed into one day … I think it will be really useful,” Kees said.
Kees also shares his perspective on the importance of protecting intellectual property, which has been the focus of his work for more than four decades.
“What I’ve seen is that a lot of times, people don’t realize that they have something valuable, and they end up seeing it on the market that somebody else brought out, and they could have brought it out to market instead,” he said. “So it’s really important to protect your intellectual property from the very beginning.”
Listen to the podcast here: https://www.wisbusiness.com/2023/wisbusiness-the-podcast-with-nick-kees-godfrey-kahn/
See the full list of WisBusiness.com podcasts: https://www.wisbusiness.com/category/podcast/
See event details: http://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/event?oeidk=a07ejjqhi6pe5be034c&llr=wt9rhp5ab
— Federal officials have announced $15.1 million in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding is going toward replacing bridges along the John Nolen Drive Causeway in Madison.
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration yesterday released details on the funding, part of a $300 million package for infrastructure improvements in eight states and the District of Columbia.
The grant will help replace six bridges crossing Lake Monona into downtown Madison. According to the release, about 45,000 vehicles travel on John Nolen Drive every day. While the two-lane bridges are “in fair condition,” they are around 50 years old with “poor structural integrity and a dangerous roadway and intersections.”
The federal agency says the project aims to improve safety for bikers and pedestrians with a new separate bike-pedestrian path, upgraded traffic signals and street lighting, as well as “smart technologies” for traffic management and green infrastructure.
See more details in the release: https://highways.dot.gov/newsroom/biden-harris-administration-announces-151-million-bipartisan-infrastructure-law-funding
— The UW System is getting a $1.1 million state grant to expand internships in certain “high-demand” fields.
In a release yesterday, Gov. Tony Evers and the state Department of Workforce Development announced the Wisconsin Fast Forward Program funding. It’s meant to support internship opportunities in professions like cybersecurity, green energy, clean water and agriculture.
The funds will go toward specific efforts at UW-Milwaukee, UW-River Falls and UW-Stout.
“These grants will help students earn while they learn, ensuring greater access and opportunities for our homegrown talent to start growing their careers right here in Wisconsin,” Evers said in the release.
See more details: https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/WIGOV/bulletins/35417a6
— The Wisconsin Dells Visitor & Convention Bureau has named Jill Diehl as its new president and CEO.
According to a release, Diehl has held a seat on the group’s board for 25 years and has served as chair for the past 22 years. She was a member of the Wisconsin Governor’s Council on Tourism from 2000 to 2002, and has held various other roles with entertainment and hospitality businesses.
See the release: https://www.wisbusiness.com/2023/wisconsin-dells-visitor-convention-bureau-jill-c-diehl-assumes-the-role-of-president-ceo/
<br><b><i>Top headlines from the Health Care Report …</b></i>
— Thousands of DACA recipients in Wisconsin could be impacted by a federal plan to expand their health coverage, according to figures provided by advocacy group Voces de la Frontera.
<i>For more of the most relevant news on COVID-19, reports on groundbreaking health research in Wisconsin, links to top stories and more, sign up today for the free daily Health Care Report from WisPolitics.com and WisBusiness.com.</i>
Sign up here: http://forms.gle/o8FtqTLviGJPja8C9
#TOP STORIES#
# Southeast Wisconsin communities could see economic boost from DNC in Chicago
# UW-Madison dairy production stopped in 2019 — now it’s back and bigger
# VC activity in Wisconsin continued at lower level in Q1
#TOPICS#
# AGRIBUSINESS
– Conservation groups and farmers rally for Farmland Preservation Program update
http://wisconsinagconnection.com/story-state.php?Id=422&yr=2023
# CONSTRUCTION
– Biden infrastructure focus turns to celebrating new bridges in Madison
– Redevelopment blitz is on in Milwaukee’s western suburbs while southern communities lay in wait
# EDUCATION
– University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee plans to demolish radio tower on top of Sandburg North Tower
– Tour the new UW-Madison Babcock Dairy Plant, Center for Dairy Research
– Cardinal Stritch president talks about the decision to close the university
– NWTC’s new president is the first female to lead the college
# ENVIRONMENT
– Inclement weather limits fieldwork in Wisconsin
http://wisconsinagconnection.com/story-state.php?Id=421&yr=2023
– Agricultural and environmental groups partner for clean water priorities
http://wisconsinagconnection.com/story-state.php?Id=420&yr=2023
– With record catch of invasive carp, wildlife officials keep attention on removing fish from Mississippi
– Wildfire burns nearly 3K acres in Monroe County, 38 counties under ‘red flag’ fire warning
# FOOD AND BEVERAGE
– French restaurant Margaux planned at The Corners of Brookfield
# HEALTH CARE
– Advocate Aurora reduces net loss to $750M for 2022; key measure remains in red
# MANAGEMENT
– Departing Harley CFO will nearly double base salary at Hasbro
– Harley-Davidson CFO Gina Goetter leaving company
– Bronzeville Center for the Arts’ new executive director seeks to leave an ‘indelible mark’ on Milwaukee
# MANUFACTURING
– Harley-Davidson CEO compensation jumps, but bulk based on future stock price targets
# POLITICS
– Health care, caregiving top priorities for citizens at public hearing on Evers’ budget
# REAL ESTATE
– Only one community makes Milwaukee area’s ‘hottest’ list for home sales
# RETAIL
– A new night market is coming to downtown Appleton
# SMALL BUSINESS
– Perogi and Midwestern comfort food spot Hot Dish Pantry to open this week
# TOURISM
– Major improvements planned for Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame’s Walk of Fame in downtown Milwaukee
# PRESS RELEASES
<i>See these and other press releases:
https://www.wisbusiness.com/press-releases/ </i>
Wisconsin Dells Visitor & Convention Bureau: Jill C. Diehl assumes the role of president/CEO
Dept. of Natural Resources: Incidental take notice for La Crosse County
