UAE Receives Fuel Assemblies For Barakah-1

29 May (NucNet): The Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (Enec) has received the fuel assemblies for Unit 1 of the Barakah nuclear station, Enec said on 29 May 2017. The fuel assemblies are being securely stored in Barakah until the regulator, the Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation (FANR), approves the operating licence for Units 1 and 2, Enec said. The fuel assemblies were produced by Korea Electric Power Corporation (Kepco), which is providing four APR-1400 units for Barakah, west of Abu Dabhi on the Persian Gulf coast. Construction of Barakah-1 began in 2012 and it is now more than 95% complete. All four units are now 80% complete. Once the four reactors are online, the facility will deliver up to a quarter of the UAE’s electricity needs, Enec said. On 5 May 2017, Enec said commercial operation of Barakah-1 had been put back from 2017 to 2018. Enec said the delay was to ensure sufficient time for international assessments and adherence to nuclear industry safety standards, and “as a reinforcement of operational proficiency for plant personnel”.