The Rosatom State Atomic Energy Corporation’s chief executive officer Alexei Likhachev said the Russian company expects the agreement to construct a nuclear power plant in Dabaa, Matrouh governorate to be concluded by the end of 2016.
In 2015, Egypt and Russia signed an intergovernmental agreement to build Egypt’s first nuclear power plant. According to the agreement the construction will be financed by a $25bn loan contingent on yearly repayments at 3% interest.
The agreement included the signing four contracts for the engineering, supply, operation, and maintenance of the power plant for a period of 10 years. It also includes the supply of fuel for 60 years. The Dabaa nuclear power plant will consist of four power units, each with 1200MW capacity and with a total capacity of 4800MW.
“We expect to finalise the agreement with Egypt by the end of this year,” Likhachev said.
In November it was announced that Egypt will carry out research by Egypt’s Nuclear Power Plant Authority (NPPA) to choose a site for a second nuclear power plant on the Mediterranean coast.
Egypt’s decision to explore nuclear energy has raised environmental concerns. Many environmental experts believe that nuclear energy is not a sustainable source of energy due to its fluctuating costs.
According to a study by the Egyptian Centre for Economic and Social Rights and the Heinrich Böll Foundation published earlier in March, nuclear energy is the most expensive energy option available for Egypt, especially when taking into consideration the high risk to the environment and safety issues in connection to nuclear power plants following the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster.
