UAE to become first Arabian country with nuclear facility

This week, the UAE has given a $20 billion grant to South Korea’s state-owned power company to construct four 1,400MW nuclear reactors by 2020.

The recent move will make UAE the first Arabian country to have a nuclear facility. The Arab nation has projected huge increases in energy demand, explaining UAE’s new nuclear programme.

The project’s transparency and pledge to forego nuclear enrichment have been hailed by Europe and the US as a good model, in stark contrast with Iran’s nuclear efforts. Moreover, UAE had already signed international guidelines, and bilateral nuclear cooperation agreements with France, the US and the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency.

Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCo), the largest power supplier in South Korea, will lead a group that will construct and fuel the nuclear reactors. Project construction will start in 2012, with the facility completion targeted for 2017.

Reuters reported that KEPCo’s winning proposal was at least $16 billion lower than other competitors. The electric firm has teamed up with Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction, Hyundai Engineering & Construction, Samsung C&T and Westinghouse Electric – a US-based division of Toshiba. The other two project bidders were General Electric and Electricity de France.

The deal is historic for South Korea. According KEPCo, the UAE project is the single biggest contract ever awarded to a South Korean firm and the country’s first nuclear export deal. The electric company’s recent win will further help South Korea’s chance on other similar biddings that it is currently involved – including several in Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey.