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ABU DHABI / AD MEDIA OFFICE
The Emirates Nuclear Energy Company (ENEC) and GE Vernova Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GVH) have signed an agreement at the World Utilities Congress in Abu Dhabi, to jointly evaluate the deployment of the BWRX-300 Small Modular Reactor (SMR) technology internationally. The agreement enables ENEC and GE Vernova Hitachi to further cooperate following the signing of an agreement in 2023 on the sidelines of COP28 UAE to evaluate the technology as part of ENEC’s ADVANCE programme for advanced nuclear technology.
Nuclear energy is a crucial solution to meeting the current unprecedented demand for reliable, dispatchable, more sustainable power coming from a broad range of customers, including hyperscalers seeking to power data centers to support growth in the AI and technology sectors.
The agreement was signed during a private ceremony at the World Utilities Congress in Abu Dhabi, UAE. His Excellency Mohamed Al Hammadi, Managing Director and CEO of ENEC and Maví Zingoni, CEO of GE Vernova’s Power segment, exchanged signed agreements as part of their commitment to explore opportunities for international deployment by collaborating on a development roadmap to include site identification, licensing pathways, investment and commercialisation strategies and supply chain development.
His Excellency Mohamed Al Hammadi, Managing Director and CEO of ENEC, said: “As we continue to power the UAE with clean, baseload electricity around the clock, we are glad to move to the next level of cooperation with GE Vernova Hitachi to accelerate the deployment of new advanced nuclear reactor technologies in the UAE and internationally. This agreement will bring together our complementary expertise to identify a clear roadmap for deployment, which is essential to ensure safe, efficient and quality-led nuclear delivery, as we have experienced here in the UAE. As global power demand continues to grow at pace, we look forward to advancing new solutions to meet this growth in a sustainable manner.”
Maví Zingoni, CEO of GE Vernova’s Power Businesses, said: “Small modular reactors have an essential role to play in an energy secure future, and we are pleased to advance our collaboration with ENEC as the UAE seeks to be an early mover for nuclear innovation. With construction of the first BWRX-300 moving forward in Canada, collaborating with ENEC further strengthens our ties with the UAE and ability to deliver this technology and achieve a more sustainable energy future.”
As developer and operator of the four-unit Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant in Abu Dhabi, UAE, ENEC brings significant expertise following the successful deployment of civil nuclear energy to power the UAE’s grid, aligned to the highest standards of international quality and safety. ENEC is a member of the World Association of Nuclear Operators (WANO) Atlanta Center and therefore is aligned on US operating standards and regulatory environment, combined with unique expertise in deployment, financing and integration. Today, 25 per cent of the UAE is powered by nuclear energy having brought each unit of the plant onto the grid in a highly efficient 7.9 years.
GE Vernova’s Nuclear Power business, through its global alliance with Hitachi, is a world-leading provider of nuclear fuel bundles, services, and advanced nuclear reactor designs. Technologies include boiling water reactors and small modular reactors, such as the BWRX-300, which is one of the simplest, yet most innovative boiling water reactor designs. On 8 May the Province of Ontario and Ontario Power Generation (OPG) approved the deployment of the first BWRX-300 at the Darlington nuclear site in Ontario, Canada. This milestone will make the BWRX-300 the first SMR to be built in the Western world and marked a significant step forward in advancing nuclear innovation.
Teams from ENEC and GE Vernova Hitachi will now work together to evaluate and develop a comprehensive roadmap for deployment of the BWRX-300. This forms part of ENEC’s ADVANCE Program, which was created to accelerate the evaluation and potential deployment of next generation nuclear technologies.
Beyond the Barakah plant, ENEC is focused on identifying investment, collaboration and deployment opportunities both in the UAE and overseas to support the rapid delivery of civil nuclear energy to drive energy security and sustainability through the provision of clean baseload electricity.