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| Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) CEO Cheong Seung-il, left, and Mohamed Al Hammadi, CEO of Emirates Nuclear Energy Corp., pose for a photo after signing a memorandum of understanding at the UAE presidential office in Abu Dhabi, Sunday (local time). Courtesy of KEPCO |
By Lee Kyung-min
Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) and Emirates Nuclear Energy Corp. (ENEC), its counterpart in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), are accelerating efforts to fortify green and sustainable energy cooperation, under a broader goal of elevating the net-zero drive to a new growth engine, the Korean state-run energy firm said Tuesday.
Sunday's agreement between KEPCO CEO Cheong Seung-il and ENEC CEO Mohamed Al Hammadi came during the eight-day state visit of President Yoon Suk Yeol to the Middle Eastern country and Switzerland. Chung was among the high-level government officials in the delegation that accompanied Yoon.
The two will seek the opportunity to jointly enter the global nuclear power facility market, as underpinned by joint research activities in establishing a power grid for neighboring countries in the Middle East.
Hydrogen-ammonia energy management and green energy certification programs will be developed, laying a strong foundation for bilateral cooperation in the decades to come.
The UAE became one of the first Arab countries to embrace the net-zero initiative in 2021, a commitment illustrated further by the construction of Masdar City, a smart sustainable city project in Abu Dhabi. The low-carbon development will comprise clean-tech clusters, business-free zones and residential districts housing restaurants, shops and public green spaces.
Sunday's agreement came shortly before Korea's state-run and private industry leaders in the energy sector went on a guided visit to the nuclear power plant in Barakah, the first commercial nuclear power station in the Arab world, built jointly by the construction affiliates of Samsung and Hyundai. Samsung C&T and Hyundai E&C oversaw the construction of four Korea-developed APR1400 nuclear reactors, which each have a capacity of 1,400 megawatts. Two are operating, and the remaining two will begin commercial operations this year and next, respectively. Upon completion, the four reactors will meet about 25 percent of the country's energy demand.
The 200 officials included officials of Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power and other KEPCO subsidiaries, as well as Doosan Enerbility.
They were members of Team Korea, a task force established to foster exports of Korea's nuclear power reactors as ensured by competent construction and safe maintenance of the energy facilities.
"Barakah Nuclear Power Plant is a global project being monitored closely by the nuclear power industry all across the world," Cheong said at the event.
"We will make sure that Korea's strength in nuclear energy systems will be best exemplified by the project to expand its presence in the global market, a point of pride that must be built on a sense of responsibility."
