Russia begins building first nuclear power plant in Egypt

Russian state-owned Rosatom has started construction of the El Dabaa nuclear power plant, the company said in a press release published on Wednesday.

“Egypt now joins the club of the world’s nuclear producing nations with the start of construction of the first reactor of the El Dabaa power plant,” Rosatom CEO Alexey Likhachyov said at a ceremony marking the start of construction.

Located on the north coast of Egypt, approximately 130 kilometers northwest of Cairo, El Dabaa will be Egypt’s first nuclear power plant and Rosatom’s first major project in Africa. The plant, which is scheduled for completion by 2028, will have four WWER-1200 reactors with a total nominal power of 4,800 megawatts.

Construction is being jointly funded by Moscow and Cairo, with the Russian government providing 85% of the $30 billion cost in the form of a government loan. Egypt is financing the rest with the financial support of private investors.

Under the agreements signed by the two countries, Rosatom will also supply nuclear fuel for the plant throughout its planned lifetime of 60 years and provide maintenance and repairs for ten years after each reactor’s start-up.

The company also offers employee training. As early as September 2021, the first group of future El Dabaa employees began their training at the St. Petersburg branch of the company’s Technical Academy. Rosatom expects to train a total of 1,700 professionals for the plant, both at its academy and at the plant’s own training facility in Egypt.

Involved in a number of major international projects – including the ITER initiative to develop practical nuclear fusion – Rosatom has not been the target of sanctions against Russia since the start of its military operation in Ukraine on February 24.

However, in May the company had to terminate its power plant construction contract with the Finnish group Fennovoima, which the latter justified as necessary due to the risks associated with the conflict.