ABU DHABI: The company that will run the UAE’s first nuclear reactor, due to start up this year, is not ready to get its operating license yet, the country’s regulator said.
UAE is building four nuclear reactors in what is one of the world’s largest nuclear newbuild projects and will be the first nuclear reactor in the Gulf, but last year the startup of the first reactor was delayed by a year to 2018 because the operating company was not ready.
Local company Nawah, which is a joint venture between Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) — which is building the four APR-1400 reactors — and Emirates Nuclear Energy Company (ENEC), will operate the four reactors.
After ENEC said in May 2017 that the startup of the first reactor would be delayed by a year because Nawah was not ready to get a license, the UAE’s energy minister said in September that the reactor would definitely be operational in 2018.
But Christer Viktorsson, director-general of UAE’s Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation (FANR), told reporters on Tuesday that while the reactor was almost technically ready, the regulator could not yet issue an operating license to Nawah and could not say when the firm would get its license.
“It is hard to say when they (Nawah) will be ready,” Viktorsson said, when asked whether the license would be issued this year.
“It is a very complex process. The organizational aspect is more important than the technical aspect,” he added.
Before FANR issues an operating license, it not only needs to be confident that the reactor meets the highest technical and safety standards, but also that all Nawah’s staff have been properly trained in running the reactor under all circumstances and can handle any emergencies.
The four-reactor Barakah nuclear plant will have total capacity of 5,600 MW and will supply about a quarter of the UEA’s electricity when it is fully operational in 2020.
In September, the UAE said the second and third reactors were 86 percent and 76 percent complete, while the fourth was 54 percent done.
UAE nuclear plant operator not ready to get license yet: regulator
UAE nuclear plant operator not ready to get license yet: regulator
Saudi Arabia’s cultural sector is a new economic engine between Riyadh and Paris, says ambassador
RIYADH: Culture has become a fundamental pillar in bilateral relations between France and Saudi Arabia, according to the French Ambassador to the Kingdom, Patrick Maisonnave.
Maisonnave noted its connection to the entertainment and tourism sectors, which makes it a new engine for economic cooperation between Riyadh and Paris.
He told Al-Eqtisadiah during the opening ceremony of La Fabrique in the Jax district of Diriyah that cultural cooperation with Saudi Arabia is an important element for its attractiveness in the coming decades.
La Fabrique is a space dedicated to artistic creativity and cultural exchange, launched as part of a partnership between the Riyadh Art program and the French Institute in Riyadh.
Running from Jan. 22 until Feb 14, the initiative will provide an open workspace that allows artists to develop and work on their ideas within a collaborative framework.
Launching La Fabrique as a space dedicated to artistic creativity
The ambassador highlighted that the transformation journey in the Kingdom under Vision 2030 has contributed to the emergence of a new generation of young artists and creators, alongside a growing desire in Saudi society to connect with culture and to embrace what is happening globally.
He affirmed that the relationship between the two countries is “profound, even cultural par excellence,” with interest from the Saudi side in French culture, matched by increasing interest from the French public and cultural institutions unfolding in the Kingdom.
Latest estimates indicate that the culture-based economy represents about 2.3 percent of France’s gross domestic product, equivalent to more than 90 billion euros ($106.4 billion) in annual revenues, according to government data. The sector directly employs more than 600,000 people, making it one of the largest job-creating sectors in the fields of creativity, publishing, cinema, and visual arts.
Saudi Arabia benefiting from French experience in the cultural field
Maisonnave explained that France possesses established cultural institutions, while Saudi Arabia is building a strong cultural sector, which opens the door for cooperation opportunities.
This comes as an extension of the signing of 10 major cultural agreements a year ago between French and Saudi institutions, aiming to enhance cooperation and transfer French expertise and knowledge to contribute to the development of the cultural system in the Kingdom.
He added that experiences like La Fabrique provide an opportunity to meet the new generation of Saudi creators, who have expressed interest in connecting with French institutions and artists in Paris and France.
La Fabrique encompasses a space for multiple contemporary artistic practices, including performance arts, digital and interactive arts, photography, music, and cinema, while providing the public with an opportunity to witness the stages of producing artistic works and interact with the creative process.
