The UAE's Barakah Nuclear Power Plant 1, Korea's "Export No. 1" nuclear power plant, has begun full-scale operation.
Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO), the main contractor of the UAE nuclear power plant, and the UAE Nuclear Power Corporation (ENEC), the owner of the order, announced on Aug 1 that Barakah nuclear power plant has succeeded in reaching its first criticality.
Criticality means that the chain reaction of fission remains constant within the reactor, which is meaningful in that it is the first time the reactor is safely controlled and operated.
The Barakah nuclear power plant is the first commercial nuclear power plant in the Arab region, and Korea is the first to export the APR1400 type. With the support of KEPCO and Team Korea, Nawah, the operator of the nuclear power plant, obtained an operational permit in February from the UAE's Nuclear Regulatory Commission (FANR) to reach criticality and completed all necessary operational tests and regulatory reviews, including completion of fuel loading in March.
Currently, Barakah Nuclear Power Plant 1 is increasing the reactor power, and after the performance test of the plant system, it will be connected to the power grid and the first power produced will be transmitted to the UAE.
After completion of power-rise test and performance guarantee test, commercial operation will begin sometime next year.
It shows that Korea and the UAE have a strong relationship through successful initial criticality. KEPCO and Team Korea will further strengthen their partnership with ENEC and the international community and will successfully complete the project with all their capabilities from preparation to operation of Units 2 to 4.
