President Yoon Suk Yeol and President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan of the United Arab Emirates visited the UAE’s Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant today, which is located in Al Dhafra in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. There, they celebrated the plant’s Unit 3 coming online and checked the progress of another unit’s construction.

President Yoon’s state visit to the UAE – along with many bilateral agreements and MOUs recently signed by both governments – has served as a catalyst for strengthening Korea and the UAE’s special strategic partnership. The two leaders spoke highly of the remarkable achievements made over the past decade at the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant, which is credited as being the largest source of clean energy and the first commercial nuclear power plant in the Arab world.

The Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant supplies the UAE with sustainable power by generating carbon-free, clean electricity. The two Presidents visited each of its units, specifically, units 1 and 2 that have already entered commercial operations and Unit 3 that is about to become operational as well as Unit 4, which is still under construction. The Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant – part of a project to create the new and renewable energy needed to achieve the UAE’s net-zero goal by 2050 – has stably supplied carbon-free, base-load power, thereby accelerating the country’s transition to clean energy.

During President Yoon’s stay in the UAE, the two leaders met with the Barakah plant’s on-site workers, including world-class nuclear specialists from the UAE and Korea. Working at the Barakah site are employees from about 50 countries. Once all four of the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant’s units are online, they will meet up to 25 percent of the UAE’s power demand and, at the same time, help secure massive natural gas resources.

The UAE President said that the special strategic partnership between Korea and the UAE has brought significant benefits to both countries and has enabled opportunities for bilateral cooperation in nuclear energy and many other key areas.

Bilateral cooperation is a crucial part of international efforts to obtain global energy security and sustainable development – top priorities for countries around the world – in the face of such contemporary challenges as the energy security crisis and climate change.

The UAE President also said that bilateral ties have been continuously strengthened over the past decade through the development cooperation in the construction of the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant. He went on to say that his country prioritized energy security in 2009 and has pushed for a rapid transition to clean energy sources through the use of commercial nuclear energy. The President added he is very proud that the efforts of all of the workers from the UAE, Korea and the other countries at the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant site have enabled its Unit 3 to begin operating, enhancing the UAE’s clean power portfolio and setting a global standard for nuclear power plant construction.

The two leaders congratulated the initial accomplishments of the recently launched Net Zero Acceleration Program. The NZAP was made possible by a mutual understanding in energy sector cooperation and the proven track record for implementing complicated mega energy projects. Through the program, the two countries will cooperate to identify and develop projects that can contribute to carbon neutrality both domestically and globally. In addition, both countries plan to utilize the areas where they have a competitive advantage to provide low-cost, carbon-neutral infrastructure for the wide array of technologies required to successfully transition to clean energy.

President Yoon said, “Two of the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant’s four planned units are in full operation and the other two will come online soon. The plant is tremendously symbolic and significant as it represents the special strategic partnership between Korea and the UAE. Just as Team Korea demonstrated the technological prowess and experience of the Korean nuclear power industry, it is time for Korea and the UAE to work together to build upon the success of the Barakah plant and produce even greater results, such as additional nuclear power plant cooperation in the UAE and the joint entry into third-country markets. I hope that this state visit will serve as a watershed for both countries to move beyond nuclear power and seek comprehensive and strategic energy cooperation, including on hydrogen and renewable energy as well as carbon storage and capture.”

Korea and the UAE have maintained a close relationship over the past 40 years. In 2009, the UAE made Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) its main contractor for the implementation of the Barakah nuclear power plant project – the largest nuclear power plant project in the world at the peak of its construction. Based on this, the two countries entered a new era of partnership in 2016. The Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (ENEC) and KEPCO signed a joint venture agreement to support the sustainable operation of the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant for the next 60 years. The relationship between the two countries has been further strengthened as it was upgraded to a special strategic partnership in 2018. Now, Korea and the UAE are expanding their mutual partnership through a framework to lead the development of clean energy at home and abroad. They will generate economic and environmental benefits through the export of new nuclear power plants, the utilization of such cutting-edge technology as small modular reactors and the production of clean hydrogen production.

When all four units of the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant become operational, it will be possible to supply clean and reliable energy in sufficient quantities at all times not only to businesses in the UAE but also to 500,000 households in the country. This will support the UAE’s national strategy to become a net exporter of liquefied natural gas by 2030. As the UAE prepares to host the 28th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 28), the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant is helping the country meet its growing energy demand and simultaneously reduce its carbon emissions by millions of tons annually.