Latest news with #ChrisParker
Associated Press
4 days ago
- Business
- Associated Press
Deep Isolation Joins International WISARD Initiative to Build Integrated Waste Solutions for a Sustainable Nuclear Future
BERKELEY, Calif., June 06, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Deep Isolation, a leading innovator in nuclear waste disposal technology, today announced its participation in the newly launched WISARD (Waste Integration for Small and Advanced Reactor Designs), a three-year international project spearheaded by the Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA). The initiative aims to develop integrated approaches to radioactive waste management for the next generation of nuclear power systems. WISARD brings together public and private stakeholders from across the nuclear lifecycle to drive innovation in how reactor design influences waste strategies across four critical areas: treatment and recycling, storage, transportation, and final disposal. Deep Isolation will contribute technical expertise and data to help inform how integrated management strategies can enhance safety and reduce costs across these four areas. 'We welcome Deep Isolation's support and participation in the WISARD project,' said Rebecca Tadesse, Head of the NEA Division of Radioactive Waste Management and Decommissioning. 'Their knowledge and expertise in integrated waste management and canister solutions will contribute to the success of the project.' Deep Isolation's Universal Canister System (UCS) is a triple-purpose canister designed for safe storage, transportation, and deep geologic disposal. It is compatible with both mined and borehole repositories and supports a range of advanced reactor waste streams, enabling flexibility in future waste disposition pathways. 'Deep Isolation is delighted to collaborate with NEA on this ambitious initiative,' said Chris Parker, Chief Commercialization Officer at Deep Isolation. 'The world needs advanced nuclear to meet rising energy demands and address climate change, but the deployment must be matched with thoughtful, efficient strategies for managing the waste. WISARD provides a vital platform to align public and private sector efforts around these long-term solutions.' Deep Isolation's participation in WISARD builds on recent research presented at the 2025 Waste Management Symposia (WMS). The company's paper Opportunities and Barriers for Optimizing Costs Across the Back End of the Advanced Nuclear Fuel Cycle underscores the importance of WISARD's work to integrate waste management into deployment strategies for small and advanced reactors right from the outset — and demonstrates strong demand across the nuclear industry for innovative products, like the UCS, that can reduce costs and uncertainty for the industry across storage, transportation, and disposal. Additional studies presented at WMS, including Progress on the Development of the Universal Canister System for Advanced Reactor Waste Forms and Economic Case for Universal Canister System in Dry Storage, Transportation, and Disposal, underscore the value of Deep Isolation's UCS in enabling practical, long-term, cost-optimized waste strategies for advanced reactor technologies. To read NEA's press release: About Deep Isolation Named as one of Goldman Sachs' Top 30 Startups in carbon capture, hydrogen power, and nuclear energy, Deep Isolation is the first company commercializing nuclear waste disposal in deep boreholes. It offers a uniquely tailored solution to help countries complete the necessary steps to dispose of their waste inventories. With 87 patents issued to date, it leverages proven drilling practices to safely isolate waste deep underground in horizontal, vertical, or slanted borehole repositories. Deep Isolation's Universal Canister System (UCS) was developed through a three-year project funded by the U.S. Department of Energy's Advanced Research Projects Agency -Energy (ARPA-E), and is engineered to support integrated management of spent fuel and high-level waste from advanced reactors across storage, transportation and eventual disposal. For more information, visit For media inquiries, please contact: [email protected] About the NEA The Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) is an intergovernmental agency under the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). It facilitates cooperation among countries with advanced nuclear technology infrastructures to seek excellence in nuclear safety, technology, science, environment and law. The NEA currently consists of 34 member countries representing 80% of the world's installed nuclear electricity generating capacity. About WISARD WISARD (Waste Integration for Small and Advanced Reactor Designs) is a three-year joint project launched by the NEA in May 2025. It brings together international stakeholders from across the nuclear energy lifecycle to evaluate how design decisions in advanced reactor systems influence backend waste management strategies. The project focuses on integrating considerations for storage, treatment and recycling, transportation, and disposal from the earliest stages of reactor development to promote sustainable and cost-effective solutions.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Deep Isolation Joins International WISARD Initiative to Build Integrated Waste Solutions for a Sustainable Nuclear Future
BERKELEY, Calif., June 06, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Deep Isolation, a leading innovator in nuclear waste disposal technology, today announced its participation in the newly launched WISARD (Waste Integration for Small and Advanced Reactor Designs), a three-year international project spearheaded by the Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA). The initiative aims to develop integrated approaches to radioactive waste management for the next generation of nuclear power systems. WISARD brings together public and private stakeholders from across the nuclear lifecycle to drive innovation in how reactor design influences waste strategies across four critical areas: treatment and recycling, storage, transportation, and final disposal. Deep Isolation will contribute technical expertise and data to help inform how integrated management strategies can enhance safety and reduce costs across these four areas. 'We welcome Deep Isolation's support and participation in the WISARD project,' said Rebecca Tadesse, Head of the NEA Division of Radioactive Waste Management and Decommissioning. 'Their knowledge and expertise in integrated waste management and canister solutions will contribute to the success of the project.' Deep Isolation's Universal Canister System (UCS) is a triple-purpose canister designed for safe storage, transportation, and deep geologic disposal. It is compatible with both mined and borehole repositories and supports a range of advanced reactor waste streams, enabling flexibility in future waste disposition pathways. 'Deep Isolation is delighted to collaborate with NEA on this ambitious initiative,' said Chris Parker, Chief Commercialization Officer at Deep Isolation. 'The world needs advanced nuclear to meet rising energy demands and address climate change, but the deployment must be matched with thoughtful, efficient strategies for managing the waste. WISARD provides a vital platform to align public and private sector efforts around these long-term solutions.' Deep Isolation's participation in WISARD builds on recent research presented at the 2025 Waste Management Symposia (WMS). The company's paper Opportunities and Barriers for Optimizing Costs Across the Back End of the Advanced Nuclear Fuel Cycle underscores the importance of WISARD's work to integrate waste management into deployment strategies for small and advanced reactors right from the outset — and demonstrates strong demand across the nuclear industry for innovative products, like the UCS, that can reduce costs and uncertainty for the industry across storage, transportation, and disposal. Additional studies presented at WMS, including Progress on the Development of the Universal Canister System for Advanced Reactor Waste Forms and Economic Case for Universal Canister System in Dry Storage, Transportation, and Disposal, underscore the value of Deep Isolation's UCS in enabling practical, long-term, cost-optimized waste strategies for advanced reactor technologies. To read NEA's press release: About Deep Isolation Named as one of Goldman Sachs' Top 30 Startups in carbon capture, hydrogen power, and nuclear energy, Deep Isolation is the first company commercializing nuclear waste disposal in deep boreholes. It offers a uniquely tailored solution to help countries complete the necessary steps to dispose of their waste inventories. With 87 patents issued to date, it leverages proven drilling practices to safely isolate waste deep underground in horizontal, vertical, or slanted borehole repositories. Deep Isolation's Universal Canister System (UCS) was developed through a three-year project funded by the U.S. Department of Energy's Advanced Research Projects Agency -Energy (ARPA-E), and is engineered to support integrated management of spent fuel and high-level waste from advanced reactors across storage, transportation and eventual disposal. For more information, visit For media inquiries, please contact: media@ About the NEA The Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) is an intergovernmental agency under the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). It facilitates cooperation among countries with advanced nuclear technology infrastructures to seek excellence in nuclear safety, technology, science, environment and law. The NEA currently consists of 34 member countries representing 80% of the world's installed nuclear electricity generating capacity. About WISARD WISARD (Waste Integration for Small and Advanced Reactor Designs) is a three-year joint project launched by the NEA in May 2025. It brings together international stakeholders from across the nuclear energy lifecycle to evaluate how design decisions in advanced reactor systems influence backend waste management strategies. The project focuses on integrating considerations for storage, treatment and recycling, transportation, and disposal from the earliest stages of reactor development to promote sustainable and cost-effective 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
Times
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Times
Chris Parker remodels a garden that starred in a Hitchcock classic
The century-old Château de la Croix des Gardes, perched high in the hills overlooking the Bay of Cannes, is perhaps best known for being a backdrop in Alfred Hitchcock's 1955 film To Catch a Thief, starring Cary Grant and Grace Kelly. But it was the 11 hectares of gardens, ponds, pools and woodlands, rather than the Palladian-style villa, that caught the attention of the British billionaire Chris Parker when he first saw it eight years ago. 'The real estate agent dropped me off and I said, 'Look, if you don't mind, could you just pick me up in four hours and just leave me here alone?'' Parker, the online gaming and film production entrepreneur, recalls. 'I could see the architecture was splendid. But for me it was all about the gardens.' As he wandered around he could immediately envisage spending hours here, he says, looking at the garden and the blue of the Mediterranean, the Lérins Islands (where the Man in the Iron Mask was held captive) and the Esterel Mountains. The garden had been modified several times since the château was built for the Swiss industrialist Paul Girod in 1919 (the Palladian-style façade was commissioned by another former owner, the Perrier boss Gustave Leven, in the 1960s). Working with the Grasse-based landscape architect François Navarro, Parker's ambition was to return the garden of Château de la Croix des Gardes to its original glory 'with as many plants and materials from the south of France'. It proved a huge task, given that 'it had been abandoned and the plants were not good, so everything needed to be totally remade,' says Navarro, whose practice creates gardens and parks across the Côte d'Azur and Provence. The parkland was regenerated with dozens of trees, including acers, citrus and figs, among existing and new pines; beds were filled with peonies, camellias, gardenias and irises (the blue iris adorns the château's coat of arms); the 36-metre infinity pool was restored; and a terrace was planted with hardy succulents. Paths were also created to wind through vegetable and cottage gardens, avenues of wisteria and valleys of magnificent magnolia trees. 'I liked the idea that everywhere you go there is a new surprise,' Parker says. Romance fills the air too from March to December, thanks to Navarro's planting of fragrant, frilly-petalled heirloom roses in soft shades, jasmine, lilies and narcissi. 'Where there is perfume, everything is better,' Navarro says. Navarro's preference for wild styles of planting did, the owner admits, go against his military training and desire for uniformity. 'But this is not a parade,' Parker says. 'So I agreed: let's have nature growing and taking over.' Hence the vibrant mix of plants — tulips, delicate hellebores, Chinese witch hazel and silvery euphorbia among the formal topiary and conical cypresses — and the sounds of water trickling from waterlily ponds and the rockery waterfall, flower beds abuzz with bees and flocks of parakeets in the evening sky. 'There are probably a hundred flying around and it's truly amazing. Noisy, but in a beautiful way,' Parker says. To protect the local fauna — bees, birds and butterflies — no pesticides are used and the estate's 17 gardeners are constantly assessing the practicality of plant species in the ever drier conditions. 'We've had two very, very dry years and we've lost lots of plants, so we're always trying to modify and adapt what we plant to maintain the quality of the park,' Navarro says. After an extensive five-year restoration — Parker's 'midlife crisis to find myself a château to repair' — the place has been transformed into an immersive escape that thrills all the senses. And just as the villa once hosted Brigitte Bardot and Leslie Caron during the early years of the Cannes Film Festival, nowadays the château and its gardens also set the scene for fashion shows (Donatella Versace and Dua Lipa debuted their collaborative La Vacanza collection here in 2023) and star-studded dinners (Julianne Moore, Marion Cotillard and Lupita Nyong'o were among guests at Chopard's Secret Night Party some years ago). • 25 of France's most beautiful châteaux to visit next While the estate is also open for exclusive use — 'I like the idea of people enjoying this beautiful garden until I find myself retired on a rocking chair on the porch,' Parker says with a laugh — the château is very much his home. 'It's my space to potter around and unload whatever things I have in my head. I can't do that anywhere else in the world. I have a house in Los Angeles, I have a house in Hong Kong, but neither gives me the tranquil feeling that I have here.'
BBC News
03-04-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Cancelled Jersey to Portsmouth ferry moved to St Malo route
DFDS says it cancelled a Jersey to Portsmouth sailing on Wednesday so the ferry could be used on the St Malo ferry operator said it had to move the Stena Vinga from its scheduled sailing to England so it could take passengers between Jersey and France said this was because the high-speed ferry, the Tarifa Jet, had not yet been approved by the UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency to carry said it had brought in a backup boat to cover sailings to Portsmouth but it was not available for the journey which had to be cancelled. The replacement vessel, Côte D'Albâtre, was due to re-commence journeys from Portsmouth on Thursday after arriving from company said it had contacted affected passengers about the cancellation on Wednesday evening and offered them free amendments to their bookings and Route Director Chris Parker said: "We apologise to customers affected by these changes and appreciate their understanding and patience at this time. He said: "Our focus remains on ensuring our passengers can travel with minimal disruption."The company has just taken over the contract to operate the ferry for the next 20 first scheduled passenger sailing between Jersey and St Malo was cancelled last week because of technical issues with the Tarifa Jet.
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Technical issues delay fast ferry launch to St Malo
Ferry operator DFDS said its fast ferry, the Tarifa Jet, will not enter service until next week. The ferry was due to start taking passengers to St Malo last Friday when the Danish firm took over Jersey's sailings but journeys were cancelled due to technical issues. The Maritime and Coastguard Agency said the vessel is undergoing surveys for the issue of a passenger certificate. Chris Parker, DFDS Route Director for Jersey, said: "I'm sorry that we have to make these changes to the schedule" and added an alternative ferry would be in operation. DFDS took over the service in March from previous operator Condor Ferries, which ran the service for 60 years. The Tarifa Jet has been undergoing a refit in Portland to prepare for the new service. DFDS said the Stena Vinga ferry will operate the route to France from Thursday to Monday, with up to two rotations daily to accommodate all passengers. The company said customers with existing bookings would be contacted with details of the changes to the schedule and alternative options. Services between Jersey and Portsmouth would be operated on a replacement vessel, with no changes to the schedule. DFDS apologised for the inconvenience to passengers at the start of the Easter holidays. Mr Parker said: "As we eagerly await the Tarifa Jet to come into service, we want to make sure that passengers are able to travel with as little disruption as possible. "I'm sorry that we have to make these changes to the schedule for this weekend and I would like to thank islanders for their continued patience with us." Follow BBC Jersey on X and Facebook. Send your story ideas to Ferry firm's first scheduled sailing cancelled DFDS takes over ferry routes to and from Jersey Jersey picks DFDS to provide ferry services
