United Arab Emirates, Possible Investment in European Nuclear Power
Posted: 31st March 2024
The United Arab Emirates has approached European nations including Britain to gauge their interest in the Middle Eastern state investing in their nuclear power infrastructure, according to three sources familiar with the talks. As part of its outreach, the UAE has discussed the idea of state-owned Emirates Nuclear Energy Company (ENEC) becoming a minority investor in European nuclear power assets, the sources said. They requested anonymity because the discussions are private. ENEC has ambitions of becoming an international nuclear energy company holding minority stakes in nuclear power infrastructure of other nations, without managing or operating them, the sources told Reuters. ENEC, owned by Abu Dhabi’s ADQ, has been holding talks to invest in the United Kingdom, the sources who have been briefed on the discussions added, without elaborating. Cash-rich oil producers United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia are seeking to diversify their economies away from fossil fuels. Meanwhile, Britain is looking for additional private investment in the Sizewell C large-scale nuclear project being built by French energy giant EDF (EPA:EDF) in southeast England after buying out a China backer. The UAE and Britain in December signed a so-called memorandum of understanding on civil nuclear cooperation at the U.N. climate summit in Dubai, where more than 20 countries agreed a pledge to treble nuclear capacity by 2050.