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Egyptian authorities ban publications on Egypt’s first NPPs

The distribution of information on the future NPP is possible only with approval from Egypt’s security bodies and the office of the minister of electricity and renewable energy sources

CAIRO, December 22 /TASS/. The Egyptian authorities on Monday banned publication of any articles on construction of Egypt’s first nuclear power plant in El Dabaa in which the Russian State Corporation for Atomic Energy (Rosatom) will take part. According to the MENA news agency, the distribution of this information is possible only with approval from Egypt’s security bodies and the office of the minister of electricity and renewable energy sources.

Sergey Kiriyenko, the head of the Russian State Corporation for Atomic Energy Rosatom, and Mohamed Shaker, Egypt’s minister of electricity and renewable energy, signed a Russian-Egyptian inter-governmental agreement on construction of a nuclear power station in Egypt to be equipped with four 1,200 MW reactors in Cairo on November 19. The document was signed in the presence of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

The agreement, among other things, fixes the parameters of the Egyptian nuclear power plant to be built with the use of Russian technologies and outlines further steps to develop nuclear infrastructure in Egypt. It also provides for the NPP’s supply with nuclear fuel, commitments of operation, technical maintenance and repairs of the power units.

The document prescribes how to handle spent nuclear fuel; train the nuclear power plant’s personnel; help Egypt to improve its rules and regulations in the nuclear power industry and nuclear infrastructure. Moscow and Cairo also signed an agreement for granting a state export credit for the NPP’s construction.

According to the Egyptian media’s previous reports, the agreement is worth 25 billion U.S. dollars. The credit to be issued in 2016-2018 will make it possible to finance 85% of the total cost of works to erect the nuclear power plant. The Egyptian side is supposed to provide the remaining 15% out of its own sources. As it was originally announced, the payments will not be made from the state budget. All the expenses will be recovered through real production of electric energy to be generated by the station.

According to the Al Akhbar newspaper, the 12-year project is to kick off on January 4, 2016. The nuclear power station is expected to be built near the city of El Alamein on Egypt’s northern coast, 3.5 kilometres away from the Mediterranean Sea.