PROJECT UPDATE 2.0- The Dabaa Nuclear Power Plant: Egypt’s nuclear energyproduction strategy is seeing progress after construction kicked off on the planned 4.8 GW nuclear power plant in Dabaa in the summer of 2022. The project, which was held up by Covid-19, is now moving towards its last phases as the Russian state nuclear company Rosatom prepares to pour the concrete on the plant’s fourth — and final — 1.2 GW reactor.

Remember: Rosatom was contracted in 2015 to handle the construction and provide fuel for Dabaa. It broke ground on the USD 28.75 bn project in July 2022. Construction work was set to begin in the second half of 2020 and completed by the fiscal year 2028-2029, but pandemic-related disruptions led to delays.

Putin was (virtually) in attendance: Russian President Vladimir Putin dialed in to a video call (watch,runtime: 32:22) with President Abdel Fattah El Sisi yesterday to oversee the concrete pouring ceremony for the fourth reactor. “Egypt is truly our close friend and strategic partner. We interact on the principles of equality, mutual respect, and consideration of each other’s interests,” Putin said.“Introducing nuclear power into the energy mix that Egypt relies on to produce electricity is crucial to meeting the growing demands for electrical energy,” El Sisi said, according to an Ittihadiya readout.

Dabaa is becoming one of the two largest nuclear construction projects in the world, Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachev said (pdf) during the ceremony.Rosatom has signed 285 contracts worth USD 1.2 bn with more than 90 local companies for the construction of the plant, he said, adding that the plan will help increase Egypt’s GDP by over 1%. Over 16k workers operate on the plant daily, he added.

WHERE DO THINGS CURRENTLY STAND?

First reactor to come online in 2028: The Dabaa plant will include four generation three+ pressurized water reactors, each with a total capacity of 1.2 GW. Construction has begun on all four reactors following the arrival of equipment from abroad, a source at Egypt’s Nuclear Power Plants Authority (NPPA) told Enterprise. The authority will start testing out the first reactor by the end of 2027 with commercial operations expected to begin the following year, our source said.

Where do reactors two and three stand? Authorities greenlit the building of the second andthird reactors in 2022. Construction on the second reactor started in November 2022 and on the third reactor in May 2023. The life span of each reactor is 60 years, compared to the thirty-year life span of thermal power stations — where heat energy is converted to electrical energy.

All safe and sound: Rosatom received permission to construct the fourth reactor from theEgyptian Nuclear and Radiological Regulatory Authority (ENRRA) in September last year after the ENRRA verified the safety of the fourth reactor, determining that it poses no risk to humans, the environment, or property. The reactor will be able to withstand the collision of a plane weighing 400 tons, flying at a speed of 150 meters per second, our source told us.

The project could be fully online in 2031, with all four reactors made ready for productionbetween 2028 and 2031, our NPPA source said. The timeline will remain unaffected by current constraints on government spending triggered by the ongoing FX crunch, since the vast majority of the work is being executed by the private sector or financed through loans and grants, sources at the Electricity Ministry previously told Enterprise. This means that work on the plant is expected to move ahead without further delays, the sources explained.

The price tag: The project is now expected to require a total investment of USD 28.75 bn due tothe rising cost of the USD, which will be covered by the Russian side, our source said. Egypt has reportedly received over USD 1 bn of the USD 25 bn Russian loan financing the project, Al Arabiya Business reports, citing comments by a government official. The funds were disbursed among the companies working on the station. The loan — which will cover 85% of the project’s expenses — will be repaid at 3% interest starting October 2029.

Who’s working on the plant? More than 90 Egyptian companies are taking part in the project, including Hassan Allam Construction, Elsewedy Electric, Arab Contractors, and Petrojet.

Part of our green transition: Dabaa is expected to make up 5% of Egypt’s total electricityproduction by 2035 as part of a wider plan for the Egyptian Electricity Holding company to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels, a source at the Electricity Ministry told Enterprise Climate last year. Renewables will have a 40% share of electricity production, while the remaining 55% will be covered by fossil fuels.

Your top infrastructure stories for the week:

  • Cairo Metro Line 4 to get Arab Bank boost: Orascom Construction inked anagreement with the Arab Bank for a EGP 4.2 bn bank to help fund the fourth phase of Cairo Metro Line 4.
  • Heidelberg Materials installs waste heat recovery system at Helwan plant:German cement manufacturer Heidelberg Materials has set up a waste heat recovery system at its factory in Helwan with a USD 30 mn investment.
  • New HHD project agreement wrapped: State-owned real estate developer HeliopolisHousing and Development (HHD) has inked an agreement with Middle East for Investment & Touristic Development to team up for a project in New Heliopolis.
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