EGYPT’S “long dream” is finally coming true, says Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, the president. Not the dream of a capable government or reliable services—but the one in which Egypt’s nuclear-energy programme, started back in 1954, finally produces a watt of usable power. The government signed a deal with Russia on November 19th to build its first nuclear plant in Dabaa, on the Mediterranean coast.
Nuclear power has gone out of fashion in much of the world. The share of electricity generated by nuclear reactors has fallen to 10.8%, from a peak of 17.6% in 1996. More reactors have closed than opened of late. But the industry is not in crisis. China, Russia and India are all expanding their nuclear programmes. And several countries in the Middle East are pursuing nuclear power, creating what some have unfortunately called a “boom” in the region.
Some fear where this may lead—a nuclear-arms race pitting Sunni states, led by Saudi Arabia, against Shia Iran in pursuit of the bomb. A nuclear deal between Iran and the West, signed in July, has somewhat allayed those concerns. Nuclear fuel in the region remains mostly under the control of...Continue reading
Source: Middle East and Africa http://ift.tt/1lg1YLb
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