The UAE is said to have made a significant leap in supporting the economic growth and resolving both challenges through the Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation’s (ENEC) Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant, located in the Al Dhafra region of Abu Dhabi. Energy security has rapidly become the number one priority for nations around the world in light of current geopolitical issues leading to rapidly escalating energy prices. These rises, coupled with spiralling inflation, are adding pressure to many national energy systems around the world and the knock-on impact for consumers cost of living is clear. However, it is critical that we don’t lose sight of our longer-term challenge: climate change.
Apparently the Plant currently has two commercially operating nuclear reactors, each generating up to 1,400 MW of zero-carbon electricity 24/7 all year around. Barakah is one of the largest nuclear energy plants in the world in terms of installed capacity, with four APR-1400 Units capable of generating up to 25 percent of the UAE’s electricity once fully operational, and so not only does it bolster the UAE’s national energy security as a source of in-country continuous electricity, but it does so without generating any carbon emissions, making it an optimal solution.
Indeed, The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has identified several pathways to limit global warming to 1.5 C in the coming decades and sees nuclear generation as playing an important role in decarbonising the energy sector. It expects that by mid-century, the majority of primary energy will come from renewables and nuclear energy in most scenarios. Additionally, the International Energy Agency (IEA) states that to achieve Net Zero by 2050, the world needs to double existing nuclear energy capacity from about 400 GW to more than 800 GW2.
Being clean isn’t the only benefit. Reportedly, the latest data shows that the UAE’s electricity demand peaks at more than 15,000 MW 3 and the four Units at Barakah can generate up to 5,600 MW of clean electricity around the clock, equivalent to almost 40 percent of this demand.
