Q: The Barakah Plant is now fully operational. What has the facility’s impact been for the UAE and how does nuclear complement other power sources such as gas and renewables?
A: The Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant has been a real game changer for the UAE. In fact, ENEC recently marked one year of full operations at Barakah, with the plant’s four reactors reliably producing around 40TWh of clean electricity every year, contributing to a quarter of the country’s total electricity demand. To put that into perspective, it’s like powering Greater London for a year.
This electricity is clean, 24/7 baseload power that allows the UAE to integrate more intermittent sources like solar into the mix and free up natural gas for use in industry, exports, or peak generation needs. In fact, natural gas consumption for power generation in Abu Dhabi has reached a 13-year low, thanks to the abundant electricity supplied by the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant.
This shift has allowed the UAE energy sector to avoid more than $9bn in costs associated with using liquefied natural gas for electricity production. Furthermore, The Barakah Plant provides 24/7 baseload clean electricity which ensures grid stability to support the expansion of renewable energy projects to sustainably transition the UAE’s energy mix to cleaner sources.
The real value to the UAE is what nuclear energy unlocks – supporting home-grown industries such as steelmaking and aluminum smelting, which rely on stable, 24/7 electricity supply, and powering the digital infrastructure and advanced industries that are shaping the UAE’s future.
Ewec’s Power Generation Facilities
Q: Given the success of the Barakah Plant, is there a possibility of an expansion beyond 5.6GW? If so, would any new units be located at Barakah or elsewhere?
A: The UAE authorities take a long-term, data-driven approach to energy planning, and any decision on expansion would be made within the framework of our national energy strategy.
Although Barakah was designed with the potential for future development, our focus right now is on operational excellence at the four units and on opportunities to use the expertise gained from Barakah to support the expansion of peaceful nuclear programs around the world.
The rising demand for power means many nations are prioritizing energy expansion, recognizing the importance of ensuring a consistent power supply to meet national needs. Having delivered Barakah, we’ve proven our ability to execute; that success is now opening doors for partnerships globally.
Q: Abu Dhabi has transformed its regulatory system in recent years with the establishment of the likes of the Department of Energy and EWEC. What have been the key changes that have benefited ENEC?
A: The UAE’s regulatory ecosystem has been crucial for ensuring the Barakah Plant has been delivered in line with all national regulations. The Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation (FANR), the UAE’s independent nuclear regulator, issued 60-year operating licenses for the four units of the Barakah Plant, based on a comprehensive and systematic review of safety and operational integrity. EWEC’s long-term Power Purchase Agreement with ENEC Commercial guarantees dispatch and ensures commercial certainty, while the Department of Energy’s Clean Energy Certificates program, managed by EWEC allows Abu Dhabi-based organizations to purchase certificates through a quarterly auction, to verify their electricity is from clean sources, including nuclear. This is already benefiting local companies including ADNOC, Emirates Global Aluminium, and EMSTEEL.
Q: The Development of nuclear power in the region has until recently been slow, what was holding it back before?
A: Developing a civil nuclear energy program is a major undertaking - it requires strong policy, the set-up of an independent regulatory body, access to capital and long-term financing, human capacity development, and the development of a reliable supply chain – all factors that require sustained support over many years. We succeeded because the UAE’s Leadership set a clear vision and policy that outlined a systematic approach for developing the UAE program aligned to overarching principles of safety, security, transparency and non-proliferation.
ENEC committed to implementing international best practices, and we partnered with global leaders while focusing on building national capacity right from the start. That’s why we were able to deliver all four Barakah units in a timely and cost-effective way, bringing each reactor online within an average of 7.9 years and achieving 40% efficiencies across timeline, manpower and costs between Units 1 and 4.
In the UAE, thanks to this strategic approach taken more than a decade ago, we’re now ahead of the curve — and ready to meet emerging demand, from AI to digital infrastructure, in the UAE and overseas.
Q: ENEC is looking into investing in small modular reactors, what advantages do you see from this technology?
A: There is certainly a huge amount of interest in the Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) today. There are over 100 SMR designs currently in various stages of design, development and testing.
The intended benefit comes from the ability to manufacture these more efficiently in a factory setting before being transported to sites, potentially closer to demand centers or for specific industrial use cases. They’re ideally suited to being deployed in multiples, generating electricity and process heat. SMRs can also help balance intermittent renewables by offering load-following capabilities, providing firm capacity to support solar or wind. Because they rely on modular construction, they may offer shorter build times.
We are actively evaluating these technologies as part of our broader strategy to support clean energy innovation. Through our ADVANCE Program, we’ve signed a number of MoUs with global developers, including GE Hitachi, Westinghouse, and TerraPower to explore SMR designs, deployment models and regulatory pathways. Of course, commercial deployment will depend on cost competitiveness, policy frameworks, and licensing readiness - but the potential is significant, and we expect to see the frontrunners in the market start to deploy their reactors in the coming years, with commercial operations in the 2030s.
Through its latest report, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) estimated that global nuclear operational capacity will more than double by 2050, reaching 2.6 times the 2024 level, with SMRs expected to play a pivotal role in this expansion.
In the meantime, we are focused on large gigawatt-scale reactor projects that have the proven ability to generate significant amounts of clean baseload electricity to meet the huge level of demand we see at present.
Q: ENEC has also signed a number of MoUs to examine investments in overseas nuclear projects. Do you see significant potential commercial opportunities from expanding overseas?
A: As mentioned, energy demand is rising rapidly, driven by the adoption of AI and industrial electrification in addition to the electrification of cars and the massive demand for cooling and desalination in nations with hotter climates. According to the International Energy Agency, by 2027 global electricity demand is expected to grow by more than 3,500TWh – that’s more than India’s total current consumption, and by 2026 the power demand for data centers alone will reach 1,000TWh, equal to the annual power demand of Japan.
There is real interest in expanding nuclear today — more than 65 reactors are under construction globally, and 90 more are in the pipeline. At the same time, tech companies from Amazon and Microsoft to Google, Oracle and others are investing in nuclear to power AI and cloud infrastructure. To date, ENEC has signed over 100 cooperation agreements with partners in 16 countries, covering everything from new builds and SMRs to nuclear fuels and supply chain development. These include agreements with the likes of Westinghouse, Framatome, Samsung C&T, and Hyundai E&C, reflecting the scale of opportunity in the years ahead.
We see a strong opportunity to bring our recent expertise in the program management, delivery, deployment and operations of nuclear energy plants to responsible nations and organizations looking to commence their own programs, add to their fleet or re-start existing reactors, as part of a global acceleration of civil nuclear energy to bring more baseload electrons onto the grid in a sustainable manner.
We are now working with others — through partnerships, consulting, or new projects — by sharing our strong model for project development and delivery. This is just the beginning for ENEC to deliver even more value for the UAE by supporting the global civil nuclear sector.
