UAE: Unit 2 of Barakah nuclear energy plant starts commercial operations

The Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (ENEC) has announced the start of commercial operations of Unit 2 of the Barakah nuclear energy plant.

The commencement of operations will add 1,400 megawatts (MW) of zero-carbon emission electricity to the national grid, bringing the total produced by Units 1 and 2 to 2,800MW. It also takes ENEC and its subsidiaries to the halfway mark of its commitment to supply up to a quarter of the country’s electricity needs.

Unit 2 of @ENEC_UAE’s Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant #inAbuDhabi has commenced commercial operations, marking the plant’s halfway point towards full operation as it spearheads the UAE Net Zero by 2050 Strategic Initiative. pic.twitter.com/Ptl7Sb63tu

— مكتب أبوظبي الإعلامي (@admediaoffice) March 24, 2022

Unit 2 of the plant joins Unit 1, which achieved commercial operation in April 2021.

Read: Unit 1 of UAE’s Barakah Plant starts commercial operations

Meanwhile, Units 3 and 4 are in the final stages of commissioning, with the construction of Unit 3 already complete and undergoing operational readiness preparations. Meanwhile, Unit 4 is in the final stages of construction completion.

In September of last year, Unit 2 of the Barakah nuclear energy plant was connected to the UAE’s transmission grid.

Read: Unit 2 of Barakah nuclear energy plant connects to UAE’s transmission grid

Unit 2 will provide 1,400MW of clean electricity, contributing to the biggest decarbonisation effort of any industry in the region, the UAE’s energy security, job creation for Nationals, and R&D innovations in space exploration, medical, agricultural and other sectors.

— مكتب أبوظبي الإعلامي (@admediaoffice) March 24, 2022

The Barakah Plant will produce up to 25 per cent of the UAE’s electricity needs when fully operational and will prevent over 22.4 million tons of carbon emissions annually, equivalent to the emissions of 4.8 million cars. By 2025, the plant will generate more than 85 per cent of Abu Dhabi’s clean electricity making it the biggest contributor to reducing the emirate’s carbon emissions by 50 per cent by the middle of the decade.

Mohamed Ibrahim Al Hammadi, managing director and chief executive officer of ENEC, said: “The start of commercial operations at Unit 2 doubles the Barakah plant’s generation of emissions-free electricity, enabling rapid decarbonisation of the UAE’s power sector in pursuit of Net Zero 2050.”

Nasser Al Nasseri, chief executive officer of Barakah One Company, ENEC’s subsidiary in charge of representing the financial and commercial interests of the Barakah plant project, added: ”Today is an integral day for the delivery of the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant project with the commercial operations of Unit 2, we are now selling double the volume of electricity to the Emirates Water and Electricity Company (EWEC) per the Power Purchase Agreement signed in 2016. We are committed to efficient and reliable power generation to ensure homes, business and industry across the UAE have continuous access to clean baseload electricity and will do so for the coming 60 years ahead. The sale of electricity further supports Abu Dhabi’s Clean Energy Certification program, allowing more businesses to demonstrate the sustainability credentials and stimulating the growth of our Net Zero economy.”

The Barakah nuclear energy plant, which is located in the Al Dhafra region of Abu Dhabi, is one of the largest nuclear energy plants in the world, with four APR-1400 units. The development of the plant as a whole is now more than 96 per cent complete.