Latest news with #WestinghouseElectric
Yahoo
21-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Mirion's Focus on Digital Innovation: Is it a Sign for Further Growth?
Mirion Technologies MIR is actively involved in digital innovation, particularly within the nuclear and radiation safety sectors. The company focuses on integrating digital technologies into its radiation safety solutions. To this end, last month, the company inked a deal with Westinghouse Electric Company to enhance nuclear instrumentation with digital solutions. The objective of the deal is to upgrade analog systems to modern digital Ex-core Nuclear Instrumentation Systems. Utilizing the high-performing Mirion proTK product line, this collaboration aims to deliver digital upgradation to existing analog neutron flux systems. This digital upliftment will naturally reduce operational burdens and enhance performance in nuclear power plants. Digital equipment is capable of delivering precise and accurate measurements. Unlike analog counterparts, digital systems of Mirion are less susceptible to spectrum degradation caused by changes in gain resulting from environmental temperature variations. The resultant stability ensures that the collected data is of the highest quality, boosting the confidence of researchers and reducing time wasted on troubleshooting. The transition from analog to digital creates the opportunity to quickly record and store data in a standardized, preset format during acquisition and transmission. This guarantees data integrity and facilitates reproducibility. Another advantage associated with digital solutions is the ability to interface with equipment remotely. The Mirion Lynx II system enables real-time monitoring and control of germanium and neutron detectors. This remote access not only offers convenience but also allows continuous observation over extended periods. Taking a Look at Some Other Nuclear Energy Stocks Constellation Energy CEG is an industry leader in operating nuclear plants safely, efficiently and reliably. CEG's nuclear fleet capacity factor was an impressive 94.6% in 2024. This indicates continued strong production in the current year. The acquisition of NRG Energy's 44% ownership stake in the South Texas Project Electric Generating Station should help Constellation Energy expand operations in the country. The South Texas Project is a two-unit nuclear plant located southwest of Houston, with a total capacity of 2,645 MW. BWX Technologies BWXT manufactures and sells nuclear components in the United States, Canada and internationally. BWXT supplies precision-manufactured components and services to the commercial nuclear power industry. BWX Technologies has landed deals and partnerships with the U.S. Department of Defense to help build a cutting-edge micro-nuclear reactor. The company is also working alongside key commercial nuclear energy companies such as GE Vernova and SMR standout TerraPower. MIR's Price Performance, Valuation & Estimates Shares of MIR have gained 24.8% so far this year, outperforming the Zacks Technology-Services' 13.2% uptick in the same timeframe. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research From a valuation perspective, Mirion is trading at a premium compared with the industry average. Its 12-month forward price-to-sales of 5.6X is higher than the industry average of 3.29X. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research The Zacks Consensus Estimate for MIR's second-quarter, third-quarter and full-year 2025 earnings has remained stable over the past 60 days. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research MIR's Zacks Rank MIR currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Mirion Technologies, Inc. (MIR) : Free Stock Analysis Report Constellation Energy Corporation (CEG) : Free Stock Analysis Report BWX Technologies, Inc. (BWXT) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research ( Zacks Investment Research
Indian Express
29-06-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
Work underway for changes in two key laws, can open up civil nuclear sector
Legislative groundwork is underway for multiple amendments to two overarching laws governing the country's atomic energy sector. The changes will align them with legal provisions globally, address festering investor concerns and set the stage for opening up India's civil nuclear sector. The first is the easing of provisions in India's nuclear liability law. Called the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act, 2010 (CLNDA), it sought to create a mechanism for compensating victims from damages caused by a nuclear accident, and allocating liability and specifying procedures for compensation. But it was subsequently cited as an impediment by foreign equipment vendors such as US-based Westinghouse Electric and French nuclear company Framatome. This was on the grounds that this legislation channelised operators' liability to suppliers through a provision called the right of recourse of the operator — an operator of a nuclear plant would typically be a company such as the state-owned Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) while the suppliers could include foreign reactor manufacturers such as Westinghouse or Framatome, but also domestic equipment suppliers such as L&T or Walchandnagar Industries. Foreign vendors, both involved in the nuclear island and the conventional parts of an atomic power project, cited this specific provision of the operators' 'right of recourse' as a reason for worries about investing in India's nuclear sector due to fear of incurring future liability in the event of a nuclear accident. A set of around 11 legal amendments are now being worked out for the CLNDA, of which two are key. One is an amendment aimed at diluting a specific provision – Section 17 (b) of the CLNDA, which is seen to be at odds with similar nuclear liability legislations enacted worldwide. According to Section 17 of the CLNDA, the operator of the nuclear installation, after paying the compensation for nuclear damage, shall have the right to recourse where – (a) such right is expressly provided for in a contract in writing; (b) the nuclear incident has resulted as a consequence of an act of supplier or his employee, which includes supply of equipment or material with patent or latent defects or sub-standard services; and (c) the nuclear incident has resulted from the act of commission or omission of an individual done with the intent to cause nuclear damage. Provision (b) is the one that is a specific insertion in the Indian context and is cited as an impediment by foreign vendors, none of whom have invested in a single project in India since the legislation came into force. This is a cause for worry for Indian sub-vendors too, since the term 'supplier' is seen to be too broad in scope. 'There are multiple amendments (now) being worked out. The most important include bringing Section 17 on par with international benchmarks. The other is to clarify the definition of a supplier and address the concerns raised by domestic nuclear equipment manufacturers that sub-suppliers are also deemed to be included in the current definition, given that there is no distinction of the terms supplier in the current legislation,' a senior government official involved in the deliberations said. Smaller Indian vendors are learnt to have raised this as an issue. The official said that in any case, nuclear projects in India have to go through a vetting by the country's atomic regulator AERB, which is sufficiently empowered to ask for the right of recourse to be expressly provided for in a contract in writing while clearing all future contracts. There are also deliberations on capping the liability of equipment vendors, both in terms of limiting the monetary exposure to the original value of the contract and a possible time frame limitation on when this liability would apply. While this was being targeted for the upcoming monsoon session of Parliament, the official indicated that this might get spilled over to the next session given the tight timelines. The second major amendment in the works is aimed at enabling private companies to enter nuclear power plant operations in India, and could also set the stage for foreign companies to potentially take a minority equity exposure in upcoming nuclear power projects. Hitherto, atomic energy has been one of India's most closed sectors. The set of legal amendments are being seen as a reform push that could help leverage the commercial potential of the Indo-US civil nuclear deal, nearly two decades after it was inked. New Delhi is also keen to package this as part of a broader trade and investment outreach with Washington DC, which could eventually culminate with a trade pact that is currently under negotiation. Amendments to the second key legislation – the Atomic Energy Act, 1962 – are being initiated to enable private companies, and possibly even foreign players at a later stage, to enter nuclear generation as operators, which is currently restricted to only state-owned companies such as NPCIL or NTPC Ltd. The government has committed to getting both these legislations passed, including an explicit assurance to this effect made in the Union Budget presented earlier this year, even though the legislative route for at least one of the two proposed Bills would be an arduous one. The amendments in the CLNDA would effectively bring India's nuclear liability legislative framework in line with the provisions of the 1997 Convention on Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage (CSC), which sought to establish a worldwide liability regime. Under this, a country that is a party to either the 1963 Vienna Convention or the 1960 Paris Convention could automatically become a party to the CSC, while a country that was not a party to either of these conventions could also become a party to the CSC if its national law on nuclear liability were to be in compliance with the provision of the CSC and its annexures. India, not being a party to the Vienna or the Paris Conventions, signed the CSC on October 29, 2010 on the basis of its national law namely the CLND Act and ratified it on February 4, 2016, thereby becoming a 'State Party' to the CSC. The tweaks now proposed in the CLND Act would align it further with the CSC provisions, officials indicated. Also, on the definition of the 'supplier', and whether it is always assumed to be a foreign company, there is now a move to clarify this aspect contained in Rule 24 of the CLND Rules, which says that 'supplier' shall include a person who: (i) manufactures and supplies, either directly or through an agent, a system, equipment or component or builds a structure on the basis of functional specification; or (ii) provides build to print or detailed design specifications to a vendor for manufacturing a system, equipment or component or building a structure and is responsible to the operator for design and quality assurance; or (iii) provides quality assurance or design services. While the interpretation of this formulation is that 'the system designer and technology owner' is the supplier, there is lack of clarity on whether the terms supplier includes only say a reactor provider such as Westinghouse, or even a small electrical package provider that bagged a tender for Rs 1 crore for a nuclear project. This clarification of the term supplier would also be done in the proposed amendments, the official said. 'There is an economic necessity for these amendments to be done,' the official said, indicating the amendments are now likely to spill over beyond the monsoon session. The big challenge would be to build the political consensus to push the two major legislative amendments through. All this comes less than three months after the US Department of Energy (DoE) accorded an unprecedented regulatory clearance to Holtec International, based in Camden, New Jersey, that potentially sets it on course to leverage the commercial potential of the Indo-US civil nuclear deal. The March 26 approval from DoE effectively cleared Holtec International's application for specific authorisation with respect to the DoE's restrictive regulation that is referred to as '10CFR810'. This specific authorisation (SA IN2023-001) now conditionally permitted Holtec to transfer 'unclassified small modular reactor technology' (SMRs) to its regional subsidiary Holtec Asia, as well as Tata Consulting Engineers Ltd, and Larsen & Toubro Ltd in India. The issue of getting a specific '10CFR810' authorisation (Part 810 of Title 10, Code of Federal Regulations of the US Atomic Energy Act of 1954) had been a big regulatory hurdle for New Delhi. This is because the regulation, while giving American companies such as Holtec the ability to export equipment to countries such as India under some strict safeguards, explicitly barred them from manufacturing any nuclear equipment or performing any nuclear design work in India. This provision was a non-starter from New Delhi's perspective, which wanted to participate in manufacturing the SMRs and co-produce the nuclear components for its domestic needs. With Washington DC having eased out the regulatory hurdle in the form of the 810 authorisation, the ball is now in New Delhi's court to push through the two legislations at its end. Anil Sasi is National Business Editor with the Indian Express and writes on business and finance issues. He has worked with The Hindu Business Line and Business Standard and is an alumnus of Delhi University. ... Read More
Yahoo
25-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Westinghouse and Fortum to deploy advanced AP1000 reactor in Nordics
Westinghouse Electric has entered into an early works agreement (EWA) with Fortum, a leading Nordic energy company, to explore the potential introduction of an advanced AP1000 reactor to meet growing energy demands in the Nordic region The collaboration signifies a strategic move towards enhancing nuclear capabilities there. The EWA is a direct outcome of Fortum's extensive two-year feasibility study for new nuclear technology options. The agreement will encompass initial project planning, site assessments and engaged efforts on licensing and permitting processes. These steps are crucial for advancing pre-licensing discussions and ensuring compliance with regulatory standards. Hyundai Engineering & Construction (E&C) has been selected as Westinghouse's partner for executing this agreement. Hyundai E&C New Energy Division executive vice president Young Choi stated: 'HDEC is deeply honoured that the journey to bring the proven Gen III+ AP1000 reactor to Fortum is taking shape. 'As a top-tier global EPC company with 55 years of continuous nuclear construction experience working together with Westinghouse, we will build clean energy and sustainable value in Nordics.' The Generation III+ reactor, coupled with grid-scale AP1000 technology by Fortum, has fully passive safety systems, flexible design elements and one of the smallest footprints per megawatt-electric (MWe) available today. Globally recognised for its performance, there are currently six operating AP1000 reactors that have operational performance and availability records. With 12 more under construction and another six contracted out, it is anticipated that 18 units based on this technology will be functional worldwide by 2030. The technology has also been chosen for upcoming nuclear projects across Poland, Bulgaria, Ukraine and European locations, as well as being considered within sites in North America and the UK. Westinghouse Energy Systems senior vice-president Elias Gedeon stated: 'With the AP1000 reactor, Fortum is advancing the world's most proven Gen III+ technology that is setting operational and performance records around the globe. 'Not only will this AP1000 project provide clean, reliable baseload power to the Nordics, but it will also deliver real economic benefits and high-quality jobs for years to come while delivering energy security.' "Westinghouse and Fortum to deploy advanced AP1000 reactor in Nordics " was originally created and published by Power Technology, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site.
Yahoo
14-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Should You Buy Cameco Stock While It's Below $95?
Cameco's stock is trading near its all-time highs. The market's soaring demand for uranium is driving its stock higher. Yet it looks reasonably valued relative to its long-term growth potential. 10 stocks we like better than Cameco › Cameco (NYSE: CCJ), one of the world's top uranium miners, saw its stock surge more than 580% over the past five years. That rally was driven by a soaring demand for uranium in new nuclear projects in a post-pandemic market, as well as its partnership with Brookfield Asset Management to acquire Westinghouse Electric in late 2023. Uranium's rising spot price, which more than doubled over the past five years, and its new 49% stake in Westinghouse Electric, which designs and builds nuclear power plants, made it a well-balanced nuclear energy play. Even though Cameco's stock is already trading near its record high of $66.91 as of this writing, it remains well below Wall Street's top price target of $95. So, should investors accumulate this hot stock before it hits that price target, which was set by CIBC on June 11? Let's review its business model and upcoming catalysts to decide. Cameco, which is based in Canada, operates mines and mills in Canada, the U.S., and Kazakhstan. It mined approximately 17% of the world's uranium in 2024, making it the second-largest uranium miner after Kazakhstan's National Atomic Kazatomprom. Its revenue growth and gross margins are tightly tethered to uranium's price, and its mining operations could be disrupted by macro headwinds, tariffs, geopolitical conflicts, and other unpredictable challenges. Its growth slowed down significantly in 2020 and 2021 -- even as uranium's spot price rose -- as it suspended its mining operations during the pandemic. Metric 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 Revenue growth (3%) (18%) 27% 39% 21% Gross margin 5.9% 12.5% 0.1% 21.7% 25% Data source: Cameco. But over the past three years, Cameco's revenue grew by double-digit percentages again as its gross margins expanded. Its new stake in Westinghouse Electric also offset the volatility in its core mining business and made it the top uranium supplier for Westinghouse's nuclear power plants. For 2025, Cameco expects its partnership with Westinghouse to boost its adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) by about $170 million. That would be equivalent to 11% of Cameco's adjusted EBITDA of $1.55 billion in 2024. Westinghouse's near-term growth will be driven by the construction of two new nuclear power plants in the Czech Republic and up to 10 new nuclear power contracts in the U.S. as part of the Trump administration's push to ramp up its production of domestic energy. The growing usage of small modular reactors (SMRs), which are easier to manufacture and deploy than traditional reactors, should complement that expansion. Meanwhile, the ongoing ban on uranium exports from Russia, the supply chain constraints in Kazakhstan, and the coup in Niger (a key producer of uranium) in 2023 are all driving nuclear power companies to purchase more uranium from Cameco. All of those challenges -- along with the soaring energy needs of the cloud, data center, and AI markets -- could drive uranium prices even higher over the next few years. Bank of America expects uranium's spot price to rise from about $70 today to $120 by the end of 2025, and reach $135 in 2026 and $140 in 2027. From 2024 to 2050, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) sees the world's nuclear capacity expanding by up to 2.5 times. To meet that growing demand, Cameco will extend its Cigar Lake mine's life through 2036, and it's mulling an expansion of its McArthur River mine beyond its current capacity. It might also restart its Springfields conversion site in the U.K., which was halted back in 2014. Over the next few years, Cameco's 49% stake in Global Laser Enrichment (GLE) -- its uranium enrichment joint venture with Silex -- could allow it to bundle uranium enrichment capabilities with its core mining and conversion businesses. That would turn it into a "one-stop shop" for purchasing enriched uranium. From 2024 to 2027, analysts expect Cameco's revenue and adjusted EBITDA to grow at a CAGR of 7% and 15%, respectively. With an enterprise value of $37.9 billion, Cameco trades at 11 times this year's sales and 20 times its adjusted EBITDA. Those valuations still seem reasonable relative to its growth potential. If it rallies another 44% to CIBC's new price target of $95, it will trade at 16 times and 29 times this year's revenue and adjusted EBITDA, respectively. It wouldn't be cheap, but its long-term tailwinds could justify that higher valuation. Therefore, I think Cameco is still a great stock to buy right now -- even as it trades near its all-time highs. Before you buy stock in Cameco, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Cameco wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $655,255!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $888,780!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 999% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 174% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of June 9, 2025 Bank of America is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Leo Sun has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bank of America. The Motley Fool recommends Brookfield Asset Management and Cameco. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Should You Buy Cameco Stock While It's Below $95? was originally published by The Motley Fool Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
2 No-Brainer Nuclear Stocks to Buy With $100 Right Now
The nuclear energy market will keep expanding for the foreseeable future. Cameco's uranium shipments will soar as that market expands. NuScale's SMRs could disrupt the market for traditional nuclear reactors. 10 stocks we like better than Cameco › Nuclear energy might not seem like a thrilling market for growth-oriented investors. It's dominated by slow-growth energy giants like Duke Energy and NextEra Energy, and the global nuclear power market might only expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 2.9% from 2024 to 2029, according to Markets and Markets. However, geopolitical conflicts in fossil fuel regions, green energy initiatives, and the expansion of power-hungry data centers for the cloud and AI markets are still constantly driving more countries and companies to invest in nuclear power. Investors can stick with slower-growth stalwarts like Duke or NextEra to profit from that secular trend -- but they can also nibble on some speculative plays in higher-growth niches of the nuclear energy market. Two of those speculative nuclear stocks are Cameco (NYSE: CCJ) and NuScale Power (NYSE: SMR). Both of these stocks might be risky short-term plays, but they could churn a tiny $100 investment into thousands of dollars over the next decade. Cameco is a Canadian miner that operates its mines and mills across Canada, the U.S., and Kazakhstan. It produced roughly 17% of the world's uranium in 2024, making it the second-largest uranium miner after Kazakhstan's Kazatomprom. In late 2023, Cameco partnered with the infrastructure investment firm Brookfield Asset Management to acquire Westinghouse Electric -- a key designer, builder, and supplier of nuclear power plants. Cameco now owns 49% of Westinghouse Electric, while Brookfield owns the remaining 51%. That stake should reduce Cameco's volatility by generating more stable returns than its cyclical uranium business, and it should make it the preferred uranium supplier for Westinghouse's nuclear power plants. But like other miners, Cameco's growth is still tightly pinned to the price of its underlying commodity. Uranium currently has a spot price of roughly $70, but Bank of America expects its price to double to $140 in 2027. A lot of that growth should be fueled by the soaring energy needs of the cloud and AI markets. From 2024 to 2027, analysts expect Cameco's revenue and earning per share to grow at a CAGR of 8% and 85%, respectively, as uranium prices keep rising. It might not seem cheap at 63 times forward earnings, but its consistent growth and pricing power could justify that higher valuation. NuScale is a leading producer of small module reactors (SMRs) that are prefabricated, delivered, and assembled on site. That modular approach makes it easier to build nuclear power plants in areas that aren't suited for bigger plants, and it's generally cheaper and requires less time than constructing a new plant from the ground up. NuScale's SMRs can be installed in vessels that are only 15 feet in diameter and 65 feet tall, and they're the only SMR designs that have received a standard design approval from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). Its initial approval only covered its reactor modules, which generate up to 50 megawatts of electricity, but it needs each module to generate at least 77 megawatts of electricity to be more cost-effective than a comparable coal-fired plant. That's why NuScale's stock recently soared after the NRC finally approved its first 77-megawatt design -- which should clear the way for its expansion in the U.S. market. For now, NuScale still generates most of its revenue as a subcontractor for a 462-megawatt power plant project for Romania's RoPower. But over the next few years, its revenue could surge as it launches its first plants within the United States. From 2024 to 2027, analysts expect its revenue to increase at a CAGR of 118% as more companies -- especially those in the data center market -- install more SMRs to power their latest cloud and AI applications. NuScale isn't profitable yet, and its stock isn't cheap at 11 times its estimated sales for 2027. However, it could grow a lot faster over the next decade as SMRs reshape the nuclear power market, so it seems like a great stock for a speculative $100 investment. Before you buy stock in Cameco, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Cameco wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $669,517!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $868,615!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 792% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 173% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of June 9, 2025 Bank of America is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Leo Sun has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bank of America and NextEra Energy. The Motley Fool recommends Brookfield Asset Management, Cameco, Duke Energy, and NuScale Power. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. 2 No-Brainer Nuclear Stocks to Buy With $100 Right Now was originally published by The Motley Fool
