UAE, Russia sign nuclear cooperation deal

The UAE and the Russian Federation have signed a bilateral cooperation agreement in the field of peaceful use of nuclear energy. The agreement was signed in Abu Dhabi at the headquarter of Ministry of Foreign Affairs by Mohammad bin Dhaen Al Hamli, Minister of Energy, and Sergey Kirienko, Director General of Russian State Atomic Energy Corporation (Rosatom). The agreement comes in line with the UAE policy on the development of a national nuclear energy programme, reported the Emirati official news agency (WAM). “The agreement signed today has a primary objective to facilitate and strengthen cooperation with the Russian Government and Russian firms in the field of peaceful nuclear energy,” said Al-Hamli, adding that “the agreement is consistent with UAE Government policy on the development of peaceful nuclear energy programme in cooperation with responsible governments of expertise in this field.” For his part, Kirienko welcomed the signing, saying that the agreement “creates the legislative basis to further business cooperation, and in particular offers the way to implement the contract signed in August (2012) between Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (ENEC) and the Russian company TENEX to supply the first nuclear power plant at Baraka with natural uranium, conversion and enrichment services.” The agreement constitutes the legal framework, through which the implementation of cooperation between the two Governments and between firms in both countries in the field of peaceful nuclear energy, can take place. UAE has inked similar agreements with Australia, Canada, the US, South Korea and France. ENEC has obtained permission from the Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation (FANR), for construction of first two reactors in Baraka in Abu Dhabi and the construction work on the first reactor has already been started since last July.