Guest: Dr Diana Casey, executive director for cement, energy and climate at the Mineral Products Association
Interviewed by: Antony Oliver

In today's episode we’re diving into cement – a material that underpins every road, every railway, every school, hospital, bridge, and home we build.

Because without it, the UK’s infrastructure ambitions would, quite literally, crumble!

The world's leading civil nuclear exhibition connects you with the most comprehensive network of worldwide top-tier suppliers and service providers across the entire nuclear sector, from energy to other application markets like medicine, agriculture & space.

£7.8 million investment in master’s degree training will create new opportunities at the University of York and the University of Edinburgh.

The funding will be distributed through UKAEA’s Fusion Opportunities in Skills, Training, Education and Research (FOSTER) Programme, which aims to develop the next generation of fusion energy specialists.

Guests: Jonathan Cobb, Senior Programme Lead Climate World Nuclear Association
Presented by: Alex Hunt. Co-produced and mixed by Pixelkisser Production

All the key findings from World Nuclear Performance Report 2025 - including the record amount of electricity generated by nuclear energy in 2024, how reactor performance changes as they age and which global region has dominated capacity growth in recent years.

In this edition Jonathan Cobb, author of the report, outlines the key findings of the latest edition of the annual World Nuclear Association publication.

We are proud to announce that Altrad has partnered with Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM), a leading UK suicide prevention charity dedicated to helping people find hope and support in times of crisis.

At Altrad, we’re committed to building a culture of care – one where everyone feels safe enough to be their authentic selves, and where mental health is valued just as much as physical health. This partnership reflects our belief that wellbeing should be woven into every part of working life, for every role, in every location.

New figures show that in the last three months, 69 people started new careers with HS2’s Midlands-based construction partner, Balfour Beatty VINCI (BBV). Those figures are expected to rise in the coming weeks as more candidates complete employment-ready training programmes.

In all, this means that 12,535 local residents are now employed on the UK's biggest infrastructure programme - representing over a third of HS2's 34,000-strong workforce.

Westinghouse has signed memorandums of understanding with six UK suppliers to support nuclear new build projects based on its AP1000 and AP300 reactor technologies in the UK and around the world.

MoUs have been signed with William Cook Cast Products, Trillium Flow Technology, Curtiss-Wright Controls (UK), Boccard UK, Bendalls Engineering and Sheffield Forgemasters.

Linxon has signed a contract with Svenska kraftnät to construct a new 400 kV substation, which includes a partial renewal of the existing 400 kV substation in Hamra, located in Enköping municipality.

Polskie Elektrownie Jądrowe has been granted a permit by the head of the Pomeranian Voivode to begin preparatory works related to the construction of Poland's first nuclear power plant at Lubiatowo-Kopalino.
Go-ahead for preliminary works at Polish plant site

The permit, issued by Beata Rutkiewicz, covers: surveying works; development of the construction site, including the construction of temporary technical and other facilities; removal of trees; construction of a temporary fence; and levelling the terrain.

Centrica is pleased to confirm further life extensions for two of the UK nuclear power stations in which it has a 20% share, meaning even greater energy security for Britain.

Heysham 1 and Hartlepool are now expected to generate electricity until March 2028, one year later than previously expected. There is no change at the moment to the expected March 2030 closure date of Heysham 2 and Torness, announced December 2024.

RWE and turbine manufacturer Siemens Gamesa are driving a new era of wind turbine innovation with the first ever large-scale installation of recyclable blades at a UK offshore wind farm.

Highly unique, the rotor blades are made using an innovative resin. At the end of the blade’s operating life, the various materials can then be easily separated from the other components as a result and can be recycled, for example into vehicle components and consumer goods like bicycle helmets and suitcases.

Equinor and partners have struck oil and gas in the Fram area, nine kilometres north of the Troll field in the North Sea.

One exploration well has encountered petroleum in two reservoirs. One of the discoveries consists of both oil and gas, while the other one is just gas. In total, the resources are estimated at between 0.1 and 1.1 million standard cubic metres. The reservoir properties are assessed as moderate to very good. The preliminary name of the discovery is F-South.