Saudi Gazette report

JEDDAH – Hashim Bin Abdullah Yamani, president of King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (KACARE), lauded the decision of the Council of Ministers on Monday to approve establishment of the National Atomic Energy Project in the Kingdom, based on the recommendation of Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, deputy premier, minister of defense and chairman of the Council of Economic and Development Affairs, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

“The Cabinet’s approval would enable the Kingdom to obtain many national gains in the peaceful use of atomic energy, including the strengthening of electric power sources, and sea water desalination so as to achieve the Kingdom’s optimum energy mix,” he said while emphasizing that the peaceful objectives and goals of the Project come within the Kingdom’s commitment to international conventions and treaties, both multilateral and bilateral ones, as well as the guidance provided by the International Atomic Energy Agency on such programs.

Dr. Yamani pointed out that the Project consists of several key components, such as large nuclear reactors, with each reactor has an electric capacity estimated between 1200 - 1600 megawatts, and that would contribute to support the basic load in the power grid throughout the year. “These reactors would enable the Kingdom to acquire and develop atomic energy technologies and build them in isolated areas away from the electrical grid. This project invests the Kingdom in uranium ore, which is estimated to make up five percent of the world’s total reserves, for the production of uranium oxide,” he said adding that KACARE is conducting a technical study to build two reactors -one large atomic reactor and another small integrated nuclear reactor.