U.S. firm sheds liability for Canadian nuclear peril

[bananas]

U.S. firm sheds liability for Canadian nuclear peril
Nuclear plant supplier GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy shielding finances from the risks of an accident at a Canadian nuclear station
Martin Mittelstaedt
From Saturday's Globe and Mail Published on Saturday, Nov. 28, 2009 12:37AM EST

One of the world's largest nuclear plant suppliers has ordered its Canadian division to hermetically seal itself off from its U.S. parent, going so far as to forbid engineers at the U.S. wing from having anything to do with Canadian reactors.

The move by GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy is spurred by concerns about liability – if an accident at a Canadian plant spreads damage across the border, Americans might be able to sue the parent company. The result is a Canadian company cut off from the technical advances of its parent, a leading player in the industry.

The company also won't allow any equipment built or designed by the U.S. parent to be used in Canadian reactors for the same reason.

The efforts of private sector companies in the nuclear industry to shield their finances from the risk of atomic accidents aren't well known. GE Hitachi revealed its precautions earlier this month at a parliamentary committee reviewing a bill that proposes raising insurance coverage for victims of a nuclear power plant mishap to $650-million from $75-million.

<snip>

Mr. Mason said worries over liability were among the reasons GE Hitachi was unwilling to submit a bid on building a new nuclear station under a recent request by the Ontario government. He said Canada isn't the only country it avoids because of liability concerns. It won't sell in China for the same reason.

[kristopher]

1. The answer is simple right?

just give the nuclear industry special protection from all liability for anything and they can provide all the power we need at a price that is too cheap to meter.

:nuke: :sarcasm: