Apr 30, 2019

Egypt's Nuclear and Radiological Regulatory Authority (ENRRA) has approved the site of al-Dabaa in the first step of the licensing process required to build a nuclear station. The ENRRA oversees nuclear activities in Egypt to ensure the safety and security of people, property and the environment from the risk of radiation.

The nuclear power station at al-Dabaa will be built by Egypt’s Nuclear Power Plants Authority (NPPA), which is affiliated with the Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energy, in cooperation with a Russian contractor.

NPPA head Amjad al-Wakeel told Al-Monitor that the ENRRA license means that al-Dabaa site meets Egyptian and International Atomic Energy Agency standards. The Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energy announced in January that the infrastructure for the project, which will house four nuclear reactors in Marsa Matruh governorate on the Mediterranean coast, had been completed.

ENRRA spokesperson Karim al-Adham told Al-Monitor that ENRRA is conducting a final review of the documents of the safety report for the new station and stressed that the authority has conducted several tests to verify the site’s suitability, including environmental impact studies to ensure there will be no harm for the area's citizens and environment.

In 2008, Russia and Egypt signed an agreement of cooperation on the peaceful use of nuclear power. In 2015, the two countries signed another agreement to build a nuclear station at al-Dabaa and in December 2017, they signed a deal to begin work on the site.