A new report out today casts doubt on the ability of the nuclear industry to deliver its promised new reactors.

French companies EDF and Areva, who are at the forefront of the new worldwide reactor design and building programme, have been making serious investments in foreign markets where they hope to build new reactors, including here in the UK. As a consequence they are heavily in debt. Read more »

Proposed sites of new nuclear power stations. See below for key

Do you live in the vicinity of one of these 11 locations, which are being proposed as potential sites for new nuclear power stations? Happy about it? If not, then you've got less than three weeks to read and respond to the information provided by the companies bidding to develop each site as part of the government's 'consultation' process.

Not only that, but if you take the information contained in the 'have your say' guide on the  government's website, you'll run the risk of being seriously misled over issues as fundamental as how much  nuclear actually contributes to the UK's energy mix, and how and where the spent fuel will be disposed of.

Two breaking stories neatly illustrate the flawed logic which still lurks at the heart of UK energy policy. First up is that German energy utility RWE's bid to build a new nuclear plant near Kirksanton in Cumbria will mean dismantling an existing wind farm on the site. While at the other end of the country, 600 workers at the Vestas Blades wind turbine factory on the Isle of Wight could be facing redundancy.

On Tuesday morning I received a call from my colleagues in Paris inviting me to pop over and see them as they had had some worrying news that they needed to share. So the next day, long before the sun was stirring and the local rooster was warming his vocals, I was on my way to St Pancras heading for a lunchtime appointment in 20^th Arrondissement. It turns out that the French state owned energy company Electricité de France (EDF), who have allegedly been spying on Greenpeace since 2004, are more involved in the scandal than it initially appeared.

Backers of the controversial MOX plant at Sellafield, which promised to turn toxic waste into a useable fuel that could be sold worldwide, had claimed the plant would make a profit of more than £200m in its lifetime, producing 120 tonnes of recycled fuel a year.

But an investigation published in today's Independent newspaper reveals what the government has been trying to keep secret - that technical problems and a dearth in orders has meant it has produced just 6.3 tonnes of fuel since opening in 2001.

Since building work began in the 1990s the plant has absorbed over £1 billion in public subsidies - money which could have been far better invested in developing renewable energy projects.

With echoes of that fantastic/horrifying nuclear thriller Edge Of Darkness (don't wait for the film, see the original TV series), energy giant EDF has been busted for spying on our colleagues at the Greenpeace in France.

Five people have been indicted by the French courts, including two EDF security executives, a computer expert and the head of a private investigation firm. The charge: attempting to hack into Greenpeace computer systems in France.

Nathan is next up in our spring blog relay - catch up on entries from other Greenpeace staff.

I've been with Greenpeace now for nearly six years, having worked on a number of campaigns, but now sit within the climate and energy team as a senior campaigner on energy solutions. But what do I actually do (a question my boss asks on a more than regular basis)?

Well, this week, what with it being spring (glorious uninterrupted sun and modest temperatures) it's been difficult to concentrate on the task at hand – the task being balancing the needs of the nuclear campaign with nurturing the infant that is the energy solutions campaign. Read more »

Prepare to be unsurprised. Very unsurprised. Those lovable energy giants EDF and E.ON have put their collective boots into government plans to generate 35 per cent of our electricity from renewable sources.

According to their submissions to the latest energy consultation, the figure is not only unrealistic but also damaging to alternative schemes such as nuclear plants. So damaging that, um, they may be forced to drop their plans to build a new generation of nuclear power plants in the UK unless the government scales back its targets for wind power.