Gulf Construction Online - Enec’s nuclear plant achieves milestone

UAE Focus

Enec’s nuclear plant achieves milestone

01 June 2017

Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (Enec) has announced that it has, together with Korea Electric Power Corporation (Kepco), completed initial construction activities for Unit One of the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant and the turnover of all plant systems to Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power (KHNP) for testing and commissioning, in preparation for safety-led nuclear operations.

The initial construction work of Unit One was finished following the successful completion of the Hot Functional Test (HFT) at the end of 2016, said Enec.

The HFT is one of the major testing requirements under the construction licence for Units 1 and 2, which was granted by the Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation (FANR) in 2012.

The handover of Unit One’s 277 systems from Kepco to its unit KHNP for commissioning marks the end of initial construction activities of the unit and the start of the preparatory phase for nuclear operations.

The Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant is the largest single nuclear energy new-build project in the world, with four APR-1400 units under simultaneous construction.

Construction of Unit One began in 2012 and at full operational capacity, the four units will deliver up to a quarter of the UAE’s electricity needs from carbon-free nuclear energy.

The project as a whole is now 79 per cent complete, with Unit One being 95 per cent complete, according to Enec.

However, under UAE regulatory law, the construction, start-up and operations of nuclear energy plants are subject to regulations issued by the FANR, and the loading of fuel and actual operation of Unit One will require the approval of FANR and the issuance of an operating licence.