With its ability to produce nuclear energy, UAE becomes the 33rd peaceful nuclear operating nation to achieve this status.

Recently, the Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (ENEC) revealed that operations at the Barakah nuclear plant has begun after it completed fuel assembly loading into Unit 1 reactor of the nuclear power plant.

ENEC received an operating licence from the UAE Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation (FANR) in the month of February.

Reportedly, the plant will enter its second stage of development now which will be led by Nawah – the operations and maintenance subsidiary of ENEC and the Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO).

Mohamed Al Hammadi, Chief Executive Officer of ENEC told the media, “Our teams have been training over the years to safely progress towards providing the UAE with clean, reliable and abundant electricity to power our economic and societal growth. Today, we are very proud as the UAE joins a limited group of nations who have achieved the global standards necessary to become peaceful nuclear operating nations.”

“We take this responsibility very seriously and our teams are safely and steadily transitioning through the sophisticated, highly-regulated process to advance Unit 1 towards full electrical generation capacity.”

ENEC is currently in the final stages of construction for the remaining three units of the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant in the Al Dhafra region of Abu Dhabi. Reportedly, the development of the four units is 93 percent complete.

The four units at Barakah nuclear power plant will generate 5,600 MW of clean electricity, which accounts for 25 percent of the UAE’s energy demand. Simultaneously, it will also prevent the release of 21 million tons of carbon emissions each year.

The post UAE is first Mideast country to produce nuclear energy appeared first on International Finance.