UAE links Arab world’s first N-reactor to power grid

DUBAI: The United Arab Emirates connected the Arab world's first nuclear power plant to the country's grid and began providing electricity, crossing the final threshold to membership in the exclusive club of atomic nations, foreign media reported.

Built and run by a joint venture with Korea Electric Power Corp., the Barakah plant will increase production gradually until reaching full capacity within months, its developer, Emirates Nuclear Energy Corp., said Wednesday. Barakah is the first of four civilian reactors that the government plans to fire up by 2023.

The plant is a milestone for the Middle East and the UAE, a seven-member federation that includes commercial hub Dubai and oil-rich Abu Dhabi. The reactors, located along a sparsely populated strip of desert on Abu Dhabi's Persian Gulf coast, are estimated to cost $25 billion. The government expects them to produce as much as 5.6 gigawatts once they're fully commissioned -- or about a fifth of the country's current installed generating capacity.

The UAE, third-largest oil producer in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, is trying to diversify its domestic energy supply and lessen its dependence on crude. Dubai targets meeting 75% of its needs from solar energy and other renewables by 2050.

The country's second reactor is already built and is being prepared for "operational readiness," the developer said. Construction of the remaining two units is in the final stages, it said. Other Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia and Egypt, are also moving toward adopting nuclear power.