H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Ruler’s Representative in the Al Dhafra Region, has expressed his pride in UAE National talents leading the UAE Peaceful Nuclear Energy Programme, and their continued efforts in implementing the vision of leadership to drive the nation towards a sustainable, prosperous future.
The UAE has made significant progress in bringing the four units of the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant online and is now leading the world globally in new nuclear energy deployment, placing the UAE at the forefront of international efforts to achieve Net Zero by 2050.
Commenting on the start-up of the Unit 4, the fourth of its four APR1400 units at the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant in Al Dhafra, H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed highlighted that the successive achievements in the nuclear energy sector in the UAE, starting up a unit annually since 2020, within an ambitious, safety-driven timetable, build on the nation’s scientific knowledge, boosting the nation’s progress in high-tech sectors to drive decarbonisation of the UAE’s power sector, as well as new green energy sources, such as clean hydrogen and ammonia to support heavy industry in reducing emissions.
Sheikh Hamdan said: “The UAE, day after day, continues to consolidate its global leadership position in the clean energy sector, through the strategies it sets - as the first country in the Middle East and North Africa to set a Net Zero by 2050 target, through the international collaborative agreements it has signed - as one of the first countries to sign on Paris Agreement and now one of the leading nations for deploying new nuclear programmes. Today, the Barakah Plant is the largest source of clean electricity and the largest contributor to decarbonisation in the region, which, once fully operational, will meet up to 25 percent of the UAE’s nationally determined contribution in accordance with the Paris Agreement.
“Today, after the start–up of the Unit 4 of the Barakah Plant, we are one step away from full fleet commercial operations. The plant will generate 40TWh, providing clean electricity to boost competitive advantage for local companies, stimulate the UAE economy by boosting in-country value, and provide the foundation for the UAE to now identify new opportunities for civil nuclear technologies, both large and small scale, to further decarbonise heavy and energy intensive industries.
“The great success achieved by the UAE in the nuclear energy sector opens broad horizons for the country in the fields of innovation, research and development, as well as international efforts to tackle climate change," he concluded.