This week Egyptian officials are in Russia to begin talks with representatives of Rosatom, the Russian state nuclear energy corporation, on the technical and financial details of the construction of a nuclear power plant in Dabaa on the north coast of Egypt. The plant, intended for power generation, was agreed upon in principal during Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to Egypt last week. This would not be the first time that Egypt has cooperated with Russia in the area of nuclear energy. The Russians previously provided the two megawatts thermal research reactor at Inchas, 40 km north-east of Cairo, that has been operative since 1961. The new plant is intended to help Egypt overcome the energy shortages that have increased in recent years, particularly during the hot summer months. These energy shortages have affected not only people's daily lives but also the operations of the industrial sector. According to statements made by Sergei Kiriyenko, head of Rosatom, Egypt's nuclear power plant would consist of four reactors each producing 1,200 megawatts (MW) of electricity. Though Egypt's total installed electricity generating capacity is 29,450 MW, it often fails to meet the peak load required of 25,500 MW due to reasons including a lack of efficiency, the need for maintenance and the overheating of power stations. However, energy from the new plant will not be available any time soon. Though it has not been announced when the plant will be operative, it is estimated that it could take anywhere between three to six years, not including the preparation phase, for construction and test running to take place. The nuclear plant is expected to be a pressurised water reactor. According to the World Nuclear Association, this is the most common type worldwide, with over 230 in use for power generation and several hundred more employed for naval propulsion. The US, France and Russia are the top providers of nuclear power plants. Experts believe Egypt has opted for the latter reactor not only for technical and financial reasons, but also for political autonomy and to isolate itself from possible western pressure. The move brings to mind when Egypt went to the Russians to fund the Aswan High Dam after the World Bank refused to finance it in the 1960s. Russia has become the destination for many countries acquiring their first nuclear plants. According to an article on the Website of the Pulitzer Centre on Crisis Reporting, “Russia's New Empire: Nuclear Power,” Rosatom is actively marketing its services to build and operate reactors to countries that do not have nuclear power plants. Its clients include Turkey and Vietnam, and it has also built reactors in China and India. The article said the company expected as many as 80 orders to build reactors in other countries by 2030 as part of the Kremlin's $55 billion plan to make Russia a leading global supplier of nuclear power. The article says that to attract clients Rosatom is offering not only to provide fuel but also to take back the spent fuel from its reactors, thus saving countries the headache of nuclear waste. Moreover, Russia is providing additional incentives to its clients in the form of scholarships to study in Russia and degrees in nuclear power plants and facilities. Such training will be needed to ensure the operation and safety of the new plant. Safety is a major concern when building a nuclear power plant, especially since the Fukushima Disaster in Japan in 2011. Even before the plan is begun, the site has already been attacked by angry residents opposing the construction of the plant. Since the announcement last week many people have tweeted that negligence at such a facility could mean a disaster that could do enormous damage. The fact that the new plant will be Russian is another concern given the Chernobyl accident in 1986. However the Russians argue that the Chernobyl accident was a lesson that has enabled them to make their plants much safer. The means of financing the new plant are not yet clear. However, since a reactor costs an average of at least $3 billion, Russia offers a rent-a-reactor programme in which Rosatom builds and runs reactors on foreign soil, a formula which could be a possible option for Egypt. According to the Nuclear Energy Agency, the initial investment and the financing costs during construction together can constitute up to 75 per cent of the total lifetime costs of a nuclear power plant that will run for 40 to 60 years. Operating costs are low and stable. But regardless of the details, Salah Arafa, a professor of physics at the American University in Cairo, believes that nuclear energy should not become an obsession in Egypt, pointing out that the developed world is increasingly converting to renewable energy. Nuclear energy, he says, brings with it not only safety issues, but it is also non-renewable and involves political questions. Egypt has all the factors that should enable it to expand the use of renewable energy, he says, including wind, solar or biogas. For Arafa, renewable energy brings with it opportunities to create jobs and not just for engineers and experts as is the case with a nuclear plant. In addition, with renewable energy deployable across the country, it can provide an opportunity for wider urbanisation, unlike a nuclear plant that is built on a single spot. Arafa does not want to do away with nuclear energy, but he does want an “intelligent mix” of all available sources of energy. “Just as the government is putting its weight behind nuclear energy, it should do the same for renewables,” he said. The Ministry of Electricity targets the provision of 20 per cent of Egypt's energy needs through renewables by 2020. According to the Nuclear Energy Institute, an international organisation, there are currently 437 nuclear reactors for electricity generation operative in 30 countries and 71 new nuclear plants are under construction in 15 others. Nuclear power plants provided 12.3 per cent of the world's electricity production in 2012.
