Trial Operation of El Dabaa Nuclear Power Plant Will Begin in 2027

The official trial phase of El Dabaa Nuclear Power Plant will begin by the second half of 2027, according to an announcement by the Chairman of Egypt’s Nuclear Power Plants Authority, Amjad Al-Wakeel. The commercial operation of the first reactor will start in September 2028, and the plant will be operating at full capacity by 2030.

This news indicates a big step for Egypt’s renewable energy sector which, according to a statement from the Egyptian Cabinet’s Information and Decision Support Center, is expected to provide 42% of Egypt’s total energy by 2035.

According to the Egyptian State Information Services, once the plant is fully operational, it will have a power-generating capacity of 4,800 megawatts. The plant is expected to generate enough electricity to fulfill Egypt’s energy goals with additional production available to be exported.

The plant is being constructed in cooperation with the Russian government. In 2015, the Egyptian government signed a contract agreeing to work with the Russian state nuclear corporation, Rosatom, who will loan the Egyptian government USD 25 billion to construct this plant.