News / Business

UAE closer to utilizing first reactors

Sunday, 29 March 2015 5:11 PM [ Last Update: Sunday, 29 March 2015 5:11 PM ]

UAE's ENEC says it has submitted plans to run the UAE’s first two nuclear reactors.

The Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (ENEC) said on Sunday that it has submitted plans to run the UAE’s first two nuclear reactors.

The ENEC said it has filed the operating license application for Barakah Units 1 & 2 with the Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation (FANR). It described the measure as a key milestone in the country's nuclear power ambitions.

FANR license are needed to guarantee the safe operation for 60 years of the nuclear plants, which are currently under construction at Barakah, in the Western Region of Abu Dhabi.

A team of international nuclear energy experts are accordingly expected to start an in-depth examination of the ENEC’s plans, the Arabian Business news website reported.

ENEC is aiming to receive an operating license for Barakah Unit 1 in 2016, in time for the scheduled start of commercial operations in 2017. Approval for the Barakah Unit 2 operating license is anticipated to follow in 2017.

Construction of the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant is progressing, ENEC said, with Unit 1 now more than 69 percent complete and scheduled for completion in 2017. Additional units will follow at 12 month intervals, with the fourth unit set to commence commercial operations in 2020, pending regulatory approvals.

Upon completion, the four APR-1400 units will boast a combined capacity of approximately 5,600 MW and will be capable of generating approximately 25 percent of the UAE's electricity needs while saving up to 12 million tons of carbon emissions every year.

AA/AA

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk

UAE