Gowlings expands its nuclear services The Gowlings Nuclear Team expanded its expert nuclear
services with the recent addition of Simon Bliss as a
strategic nuclear adviser. Simon is based out of our
London office and will work closely Robert Armour and the rest
of Gowlings' nuclear team in the development of
Gowlings' international nuclear initiatives. Simon has extensive experience in international strategy and
business development in the energy sector, with a focus on
nuclear power projects. During his 30-year career, Simon has
held a number of senior business positions in the UK energy sector
and has been a strategic adviser to energy companies in North
America. Simon began his career with the UK's Central Electricity
Generating Board before joining Scottish Nuclear as commercial
development manager, making a substantial contribution to its
merger with Nuclear Electric and subsequent privatization as
British Energy PLC. While at British Energy, Simon served as head of business
development and regional director, North America, where he was
responsible for developing the organization's nuclear power
station acquisition strategy. He also served as director of
strategy and business development, leading international
initiatives including a number of significant transactions in the
UK, North America and Europe. During British Energy's complex
restructuring period in 2002 - 2003, Simon was responsible for
securing a rapid, value-enhancing sale of the company's 50
interest in AmerGen to its joint venture partner, the proceeds of
which were vital to British Energy's liquidity and successful
restructuring. Simon has provided advice to public and private sector clients
on new build nuclear investment in UK and Canada including
economics, commercial risk structure, commercial and technical due
diligence, capital raising, asset valuation and technology and
siting options. Not only does he bring to Gowlings a deep understanding and
global perspective on nuclear issues and first hand knowledge in
structuring and closing nuclear projects, Simon offers an overtly,
business-led advisory service that complements the legal expertise
of the Gowlings nuclear team. Nuclear - Dubai conference At the end of September, Robert Armour and Simon Bliss, two
members of the Gowlings nuclear team, attended the 2nd
Annual MENA Nuclear Construction Conference in Dubai. The Middle East/North Africa (MENA) Region has shown significant
interest in developing nuclear energy as an alternate source of
base-load power. In addition to the project under way in the
United Arab Emirates (four 1400 MW reactors by 2020), there is real
interest or early development in nuclear programs in Saudi Arabia,
Jordan, Turkey, Iran and Egypt, with exploratory interest from
Oman, Kuwait, Morocco and other MENA countries. The conference, with over 120 attendees proved to be an ideal
meeting point for East and West. In addition to speakers wide
global perspective, the conference attendees included
representation from China, Japan, Russia, Korea, Eastern and
Western Europe, as well as dominant contingents from UK and U.S.
consulting groups. The Saudi speaker representing the King Abdullah City for
Atomic and Renewable Energy (KA-CARE) explained the rationale for
its new energy program (nuclear, solar and limited geothermal),
namely, preserving oil to enable the kingdom to remain a
swing/stabilising oil producer while providing for the rising
domestic electricity demand (630Twh by 2030) on a sustainable
basis, and for a global desalination program (18% of world demand).
Long term, the Saudis may go for concentrated solar and storage but
as a bridge for the next 50 years they see nuclear as the only
practical energy source. (This logic should also apply to other
gulf oil states such as Kuwait ). Gowlings was able to use the conference as a business
development opportunity for its international nuclear business
plan. As mentioned elsewhere in this publication (see first
article), we have added strategic advisory services to our standard
nuclear legal services. Robert and Simon are leading this
initiative. Report on the Inaugural NEA nuclear law
course Last month I completed a week long course on nuclear law at the
headquarters of the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency in Paris. This
intensive program covered virtually all aspects of nuclear law,
including the management of spent fuel and radioactive waste, third
party liability and the insurance of nuclear risks, the
transportation of nuclear materials, and non-proliferation. It was the first time the "International Nuclear Law
Essentials" course was offered. Participants came from all
over the world but mainly from Europe. I was the only Canadian.
Both the public and private sectors were well represented, with a
number of participants from national nuclear regulators and law
enforcement agencies, some from private utilities and equipment
suppliers, and a few from service providers like insurers and law
firms. The lecturers were drawn from industry, academia, government and
international organizations. Some of them had been instrumental in
negotiating the treaties and conventions that form the backbone of
international nuclear law. The keynote address was given by Lord
Hutton of Furness, the former UK cabinet minister and current
chairman of the UK Nuclear Industry Association, who spoke about
how, despite its various challenges, nuclear power remains in many
places an irreplaceable part of the supply mix. As would be expected, a recurrent theme was the Fukushima
incident and its implications for the nuclear industry. Several
lecturers spoke about the difficulties associated with the phase
out of nuclear plants before the end of their design life, not only
in terms of finding alternative sources of power, but also in terms
of financing and managing the physical decommissioning. Overall, I
was struck by how bullish many of the speakers and participants
remain about nuclear power. A commonly expressed view was that,
despite the sudden policy reversals in some countries, notably
Germany, the global outlook for the industry is fairly bright, with
demand for new nuclear plants, especially in Asia, likely to remain
strong into the medium and longer term. The content of this article is intended to provide a general
guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought
about your specific circumstances.Contents
By:
Terence A. McNally
By:
Simon R. Bliss and
Robert Armour
By:
Ian Richler
ARTICLE
16 November 2011
Energy @ Gowlings - Nuclear Special Edition: November 14, 2011
The Gowlings Nuclear Team expanded its expert nuclear services with the recent addition of Simon Bliss as a strategic nuclear adviser.