SEOUL - The final unit of the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), constructed by a South Korean consortium, has initiated its startup phase, Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) reported on Friday.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the commencement of Unit 4's operations, marked by the production of heat through nuclear fission, paves the way for its expected commercial operation within the first half of the year. This reactor is the last of four units built at Barakah, located 270 kilometers west of Abu Dhabi, under a $20 billion agreement secured by KEPCO in 2009, signifying South Korea's inaugural export of a domestically developed commercial nuclear power plant. The operationalization of the first three units occurred successively in April 2021, March 2022, and February 2023, establishing the Barakah plant as the Arab region's first multi-unit operational nuclear facility. Each of the four APR-1400 pressurized water reactors at the site is capable of generating up to 1,400 megawatts of clean electricity.