Nuclear Corporation Formed

The Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Affairs Authority, Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak, will chair ENEC’s Board of Directors, while the UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade, Shaikha Lubna Al Qasimi, will be its Deputy Chairperson, as per another decree issued by General Shaikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces.

The other three members nominated to the Board are Jasem Mohamed Al Zaabi, Mohamed Sahu Al Suwaidi and David F. Scott, according to a release received here from ENEC on Wednesday.

The announcement marks an important milestone in the country’s civilian nuclear energy development programme, which recently received a major push with the landmark nuclear agreement between the UAE and the US coming into force.

The formal establishment of ENEC also assumes significance because the announcement on selecting contractors for the country’s first nuclear reactor is also expected very soon. ENEC is now in the final stages of negotiating with teams of contractors who are bidding to design, build and help operate the plants.

ENEC is also in an advanced stage of evaluating potential sites for nuclear power plants throughout the UAE. A team of UAE and international experts are conducting scientific studies in seismology, geology, the environment and other factors related to the location of a nuclear reactor, the release said.

Actual construction of the UAE’s maiden reactor — starting with the first pouring of safety-related concrete — will commence in 2012 and country is planning to start generating energy from it in 2017, the release said.

Apart from selecting the prime contractor and identifying the location of the reactor, ENEC will have the mandate to ensure safe construction and running of the plants, apart from harnessing manpower for the sector. ENEC will also serve as the investment arm of the Abu Dhabi Government in the nuclear sector, both domestically and internationally.

“Our responsibility to the nation is clear: we will operate as a company in the safest manner possible as we build this programme and supply electricity to the UAE,” the release said, quoting ENEC Chief Executive Officer Mohamed Al Hammadi.

“Our mandate is also clear: build a culture of safety and a record of safety that is second to none in the nuclear industry,” Al Hammadi added.

ENEC will oversee the work of the eventual prime contractor during design, construction and operation, and will work closely with the Abu Dhabi and Federal governments to ensure that the civil nuclear power programme is aligned with the industrial infrastructure plans of the UAE.

ENEC will be regulated by the Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation (FANR). This independent safety regulatory body, formed as per the norms of the International Atomic Energy Agency, will be responsible for overseeing the nuclear energy sector within the state and the enforcement of nuclear safety and radiological protection standards. FANR will also be responsible for licensing operators in the nuclear sector and monitoring radiological materials.

ENEC is in the process of developing and implementing a strategy for the management of all nuclear fuel activities, including procurement, use, and short and long-term management of nuclear fuel for its plants, the release said.

The strategy conforms to the guidelines established by the IAEA and will be continually updated, taking into account new information and technological advancements likely in the nuclear industry in the coming decades, before long-term spent fuel management plan is necessary. The UAE, however, had agreed to forgo enrichment of spent fuel as per the international agreements it had signed.

ramavarman@khaleejtimes.ae

• UAE