Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (Enec) has announced that its operations and maintenance subsidiary, Nawah Energy Company (Nawah), in partnership with the Abu Dhabi Transmission and Despatch Company (Transco), a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (Taqa), has safely and successfully connected Unit 1 of the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant to the UAE grid, and is despatching its first megawatts of clean electricity to the nation.
Korea Electric Power Corporation (Kepco) is the prime contractor and joint venture partner for the UAE nuclear energy plant. Enec had roped in Kepco to capitalise on its 40-plus years of nuclear experience for the benefit of the Barakah project, which is aimed at delivering a safe, clean, efficient and reliable nuclear energy to the UAE grid.
During the process, the generator in Unit 1 was integrated and synchronised with the requirements of the UAE’s national electricity transmission grid.
Unit 1 connection, also referred to as ‘grid synchronisation’, marks the first time that clean electricity produced at the plant is delivered to the UAE national grid. This follows the safe and successful start-up of Unit 1 at the end of July 2020 by Nawah.
Since then, the operations team has run a series of tests, steadily increasing the power levels to ultimately generate the first megawatts of baseload electricity produced by the Barakah plant, located in the Al Dhafrah Region of Abu Dhabi.
With clean electricity from peaceful nuclear energy now being delivered to homes and business across the UAE, this milestone is a significant moment in the continued safe, secure, and quality-led delivery of the UAE Peaceful Nuclear Energy Program and its cornerstone, the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant.
Enec CEO Mohamed Ibrahim Al Hammadi said: "The safe and successful connection of Unit 1 to the UAE grid marks the key moment when we begin to deliver on our mission to power the growth of the Nation by supplying clean electricity, around the clock."
"Grid connection of Unit 1 really is the beginning of a new era in our project, which is built upon years of preparation and adherence to the highest international safety and quality standards. We are confident in our people and our technology to continue to progress to reach commercial operations, and the completion of the remaining three units, with the goal to power up to 25% of the UAE’s electricity needs for at least the next 60 years," remarked Al Hammadi.
"This project, in addition to the UAE’s efforts made in implementing other forms of clean power generation, delivers one of the most ambitious clean electricity transformations in the region and the world, setting the nation on a new track of sustainable development and electrification," he noted.
Al Hammadi pointed out that the successful delivery of electricity to the nation was the result of strong and sustained collaboration with Enec's local and international partners.
"We extend our full appreciation to Transco, and our prime contractor and joint venture partner, the Korea Electric Power Corporation (Kepco), as well as the many other UAE-based stakeholders and numerous international nuclear organizations who have worked closely with us over the past decade," he said.
"Their experience, and that of the wider global nuclear energy industry, has supported our adherence and commitment to ensuring the highest safety, quality, security, transparency, and non-proliferation standards throughout the development of the UAE Peaceful Nuclear Energy Program," he added.
Transco’s role in this effort is both critical and extensive, having constructed 952 km of 400 kV overhead lines to connect the Barakah plant Unit 1 to the Abu Dhabi electricity grid – ensuring the power generated at Barakah is safely, securely and reliably delivered to consumers across the UAE.
"Transco plays an important role in facilitating a more sustainable energy future for the UAE. As the country forges ahead with utility-scale clean energy projects, we continue to ensure these projects can effectively integrate with our existing network infrastructure to provide a secure and stable supply of power to the community," remarked its CEO Dr Afif Saif Al Yafei.
The integration of Unit 1 of the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant is an important step towards increasing clean energy generation capacity to the grid, said Al Yafei.
"We are proud to have partnered with Enec and its operation and maintenance subsidiary, Nawah, on such an important project for the UAE, and look forward to advancing our partnership for the next stages of the project, he added.
With the integration and connection complete, Unit 1’s nuclear operators will begin the process of gradually raising the power levels, known as Power Ascension Testing (PAT).
Throughout this process, the Unit 1 systems follow international best practice to safely progress and test the unit as it proceeds towards full electricity production. Once the process is completed, Unit 1 will deliver, at full capacity, abundant baseload electricity to power the growth and prosperity of the UAE for decades to come, said the statement from Enec.
This testing will be conducted under the continued oversight of the UAE’s independent nuclear regulator, FANR, which has now conducted more than 280 inspections since the start of Barakah’s development.
This is in addition to over 40 missions and assessments by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and World Association of Nuclear Operators, it added.
