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The UAE’s historic achievement of the full commercial operation of the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant embodies the status it has achieved over the past years as a leading power in the global nuclear sector.
Through the Barakah plant, the UAE has succeeded in providing a reference model for all countries in the process of transitioning to carbon-free energy sources, as the plant was able, in just 4 years, to reduce carbon emissions by up to 25%, which enhances the UAE’s efforts to achieve climate neutrality by 2050.
Experts in the global nuclear sector confirmed that the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant project reflects the UAE’s commitment to contributing to a safe and sustainable energy future worldwide, and enhances its effective role in achieving global sustainable development goals.
“The UAE’s nuclear sector has a bright future, as it places safety, security and innovation at the heart of its development,” said William Magwood, Director-General of the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency, in a statement to Emirates News Agency (WAM). He expressed the agency’s aspiration to continue sharing the sector’s development journey with the UAE and following up on its ambitious visions.
He added: “The UAE’s peaceful nuclear programme is a global model of safety and innovation, and an exceptional example for countries looking to build advanced peaceful nuclear power plants, as it is a symbol of technological progress,” pointing to the UAE’s leading capabilities in this vital field and its contribution to spreading this culture globally through the qualitative initiatives it presents on the international scene.
“The UAE is making commendable progress in developing its peaceful nuclear programme, and strategic planning has led to significant achievements, with the Barakah plant becoming the largest producer and provider of clean electricity in the region,” said Alexander Voronkov, Regional Vice President and Director of Rosatom Middle East and North Africa.
“The UAE’s dedication to a sustainable energy future while ensuring social and economic development is a model for other countries to emulate, and we firmly believe that nuclear power must play a major role in the global transition to clean energy needed to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050,” he added.
He pointed to the successful record of cooperation between Rosatom and the UAE and the Middle East and North Africa countries as a whole in the nuclear sector, as the company supplies “enriched uranium” to the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant, in addition to working on building two nuclear power plants in the region: the Dabaa Nuclear Power Plant in Egypt, and the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant in Turkey.
For its part, the authorities concerned with developing the UAE’s peaceful nuclear programme continue their tireless efforts to place the UAE’s nuclear capability at the heart of global cooperation by strengthening frameworks for cooperation with international institutions in various scientific and innovative fields.
The Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation, which is responsible for developing the country’s nuclear energy sector, has a strong network of global partnerships built on solid foundations that aim to consolidate the UAE’s nuclear sector globally and explore opportunities for international cooperation in various fields such as research, development and innovation with specialized institutions.
The Corporation has launched several global initiatives that contribute to enhancing environmentally friendly energy security and doubling nuclear energy production capacity to achieve climate targets, the most important of which is the “Nuclear Energy for Climate Neutrality” initiative, which was launched last year in cooperation with the World Nuclear Organization, with the support of the International Atomic Energy Agency, to form international cooperation and triple nuclear production capacity to achieve climate neutrality by 2050.
To ensure the sustainability of the Barakah plants over the coming decades, the Corporation has been keen to develop a local supply chain, within the framework of which local companies have been awarded contracts to supply products and services to the Barakah plants, with a value exceeding AED 24.5 billion, in addition to helping local companies raise standards to match the advanced nuclear energy sector; some of them have succeeded in exporting their products to global nuclear energy markets.
