The UAE’s Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation (FANR) appears no closer to awarding an operating license for the country’s first nuclear power plant, with slippage to 2019 or beyond looking likely. Construction of the Barakah-1 plant was completed in May 2017, but the unit is still awaiting commissioning amid management upheaval.
The plant, one of four being built at Barakah on the Gulf coast 50km west of Ruwais, will be operated by Nawah Energy, a joint venture of Korean nuclear contractor Kepco and state firm Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (Enec). However, FANR director general Christer Viktorsson said in January that “it is hard to say when they (Nawah) will be ready” to operate the plant (MEES, 16 February). (CONTINUED - 513 WORDS)
