EL-DABAA /Egypt/. January 23. /TASS/. The pouring of concrete into the foundation of the fourth power unit at the El-Dabaa nuclear power plant is a landmark event that ushers in a new era in relations between Cairo and Moscow, President of Egypt Abdel Fattah El-Sisi said at a ceremony in which he and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin took part via video linkup.
"The initial pouring of concrete into the foundation of the fourth power unit of the El-Dabaa nuclear power plant is a historic event for our country and our people. It can be regarded as a new page in Egyptian-Russian relations," the Egyptian leader said.
El-Sisi also expressed gratitude to Putin for his "support in the implementation of the nuclear power plant construction project" and noted that the ceremony held in El-Dabaa represents "another achievement that Moscow and Cairo were able to secure as a result of close cooperation."
The Egyptian President highly appreciated the activities of the general contractor of the nuclear power plant construction project - the Russian enterprise Atomstroyexport (the engineering division of the Rosatom nuclear corporation) - and the commissioning party, the Egyptian Nuclear Power Plants Authority.
The Egyptian leader noted that the construction of El-Dabaa is ahead of schedule, which "reflects the scale of efforts that both sides are making to implement the project."
According to El-Sisi, the creation of a peaceful nuclear power plant is "a long-standing dream of the Egyptian people," the implementation of which will help Egypt "move forward along the path of development and industrial growth."
El-Dabaa is the first nuclear power plant in Egypt to be built by Rosatom in the Matrouh Governorate on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea about 300 kilometers northwest of Cairo. This is Rosatom's first major project in Africa. By 2028, the state corporation will build four units of the plant with VVER-1200 reactors and will supply nuclear fuel throughout the life cycle of the NPP (60 years), as well as provide training, maintenance and repair services for 10 years after the start-up of each unit. The contract also provides for the construction of the first module of dry containerized storage of spent nuclear fuel by 2028. Egypt expects the NPP to reach full capacity by 2030.