31 March 2010
By Taylor Luck
AMMAN - Jordan took a historic step towards becoming a nuclear energy user and technology supplier on Tuesday by signing an agreement with a South Korean consortium for the construction of a nuclear research reactor.
Jordan and a consortium comprising the Korean Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI) and Daewoo yesterday finalised a deal for a $130 million nuclear research reactor to be jointly funded by the Jordan Atomic Energy Commission (JAEC) and a $70 million soft loan extended by South Korea.
The nuclear research reactor is to be the focal point of a national technology and training centre at the Jordan University of Science and Technology (JUST) near Irbid, which may become the epicentre of training activities in the Arab world, where several countries have expressed their nuclear ambitions.
“This contract demonstrates the JAEC’s great confidence in Korean nuclear technology and safety,” JAEC Chairman Khaled Toukan said during a ceremony held at the commission’s headquarters yesterday to mark the event.
South Korean Minister of Education Byong Man Ahn highlighted the close cooperation between the two sides.
“Jordan has a real opportunity to accelerate its nuclear development in terms of both volume and capacity to prepare a future generation to man a commercial nuclear power plant,” Byong said.
According to Ned Xoubi, JAEC commissioner for nuclear fuel cycle and head of the nuclear research reactor project, construction on the plant is expected to start in June, starting with an 18-month period devoted to environmental and seismic feasibility studies.
Actual construction is expected to take two years, he pointed out, noting that the reactor expected to be online and operational by 2015.
Once operational, the reactor will have the potential to produce 10 times the amount of radioisotopes used in Jordan, paving the way for the export of radioisotopes for medical and agricultural uses.
Jordan selected the South Korean consortium last December after evaluating competitive bids from Russia, China and Argentina.
Xoubi underlined that there are currently 284 nuclear research reactors in 56 countries around the world, 64 of which are located on university campuses.
While many nuclear research reactors are in heavy residential areas, the centre at JUST will comprise a few buildings within a 500-metre radius.
The reactor is open-pool 5-megawatt (MW) model, with the ability to upgrade to 10MW if needed. Xoubi pointed out that the reactor will feature a 70 per cent fuel burn-up, as a majority of the fuel will be consumed in the process of operation, which will rely on 19 per cent enriched uranium.
Jordan will secure nuclear fuel from various international vendors, or Jordanian uranium enriched abroad through the Jordanian-French Uranium Mining Company and AREVA, commission officials indicated.
The JAEC will partly fund the centre with JD60 million over a five-year period, and a soft loan at 0.2 per cent interest over 30 years with a 10-month grace period, according to the JAEC.
Approximately 50 per cent of overall costs are to be spent in Jordan, creating job opportunities, Xoubi stressed.
Training for generations
The nuclear research reactor is to train future generations of cadres to support Jordan’s peaceful nuclear power programme, which aims to wean the country off of energy imports.
By the time the research reactor is operational, the Kingdom will be training over 100 Jordanian nuclear engineers, who will be instrumental in the establishment and maintenance of nuclear power plants for electricity production, Xoubi added.
As part of the agreement, signed yesterday at the Prime Ministry in the presence of Prime Minister Samir Rifai, some 56 staff will be trained as nuclear engineers and technicians in reactor operation and maintenance, radioisotope production, and radiation safety in South Korea and in the Kingdom.
South Korea also offered to provide training for regulators at the Nuclear Safety Academy through Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety, KAERI Vice President Jae Joo Ha indicated.
Under the agreement, Jordan has the exclusive rights to reexport the technology after 20 years, paving the way for the potential development of a local nuclear industry, officials indicated.
Jordan may follow the model of South Korea, which went from a 100-kilowatt nuclear research reactor in the 1950s to operating 20 reactors domestically. As of this year, South Korea has become a nuclear technology supplier, embarking on projects in the Kingdom and the UAE.
“At the end of the day, we would like to move from nuclear technology users to developers within 20 years time, but this would take hard work,” Toukan told The Jordan Times.
Jae expressed hope that long-term cooperation will continue between the Kingdom and South Korea.
“We are not just supplying technology, then leaving. We want to help Jordan develop a successful programme over time and make similar achievements to Korea,” he said, underlining that South Korea took some 50 years between embarking on its nuclear research reactor and exporting technology.
“We think Jordan can make this leap in a much shorter time,” Jae added.
South Korean officials also highlighted the South Korea-constructed APR1000 reactor as a potential technology for Jordan’s commercial power plants.
The research reactor is an important precursor to the Kingdom’s first nuclear reactor (1,000MW Generation III) expected to be built on a site outside of Aqaba within the next decade.
Source: http://www.jordantimes.com/?news=25329
By Taylor Luck
AMMAN - Jordan took a historic step towards becoming a nuclear energy user and technology supplier on Tuesday by signing an agreement with a South Korean consortium for the construction of a nuclear research reactor.
Jordan and a consortium comprising the Korean Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI) and Daewoo yesterday finalised a deal for a $130 million nuclear research reactor to be jointly funded by the Jordan Atomic Energy Commission (JAEC) and a $70 million soft loan extended by South Korea.
The nuclear research reactor is to be the focal point of a national technology and training centre at the Jordan University of Science and Technology (JUST) near Irbid, which may become the epicentre of training activities in the Arab world, where several countries have expressed their nuclear ambitions.
“This contract demonstrates the JAEC’s great confidence in Korean nuclear technology and safety,” JAEC Chairman Khaled Toukan said during a ceremony held at the commission’s headquarters yesterday to mark the event.
South Korean Minister of Education Byong Man Ahn highlighted the close cooperation between the two sides.
“Jordan has a real opportunity to accelerate its nuclear development in terms of both volume and capacity to prepare a future generation to man a commercial nuclear power plant,” Byong said.
According to Ned Xoubi, JAEC commissioner for nuclear fuel cycle and head of the nuclear research reactor project, construction on the plant is expected to start in June, starting with an 18-month period devoted to environmental and seismic feasibility studies.
Actual construction is expected to take two years, he pointed out, noting that the reactor expected to be online and operational by 2015.
Once operational, the reactor will have the potential to produce 10 times the amount of radioisotopes used in Jordan, paving the way for the export of radioisotopes for medical and agricultural uses.
Jordan selected the South Korean consortium last December after evaluating competitive bids from Russia, China and Argentina.
Xoubi underlined that there are currently 284 nuclear research reactors in 56 countries around the world, 64 of which are located on university campuses.
While many nuclear research reactors are in heavy residential areas, the centre at JUST will comprise a few buildings within a 500-metre radius.
The reactor is open-pool 5-megawatt (MW) model, with the ability to upgrade to 10MW if needed. Xoubi pointed out that the reactor will feature a 70 per cent fuel burn-up, as a majority of the fuel will be consumed in the process of operation, which will rely on 19 per cent enriched uranium.
Jordan will secure nuclear fuel from various international vendors, or Jordanian uranium enriched abroad through the Jordanian-French Uranium Mining Company and AREVA, commission officials indicated.
The JAEC will partly fund the centre with JD60 million over a five-year period, and a soft loan at 0.2 per cent interest over 30 years with a 10-month grace period, according to the JAEC.
Approximately 50 per cent of overall costs are to be spent in Jordan, creating job opportunities, Xoubi stressed.
Training for generations
The nuclear research reactor is to train future generations of cadres to support Jordan’s peaceful nuclear power programme, which aims to wean the country off of energy imports.
By the time the research reactor is operational, the Kingdom will be training over 100 Jordanian nuclear engineers, who will be instrumental in the establishment and maintenance of nuclear power plants for electricity production, Xoubi added.
As part of the agreement, signed yesterday at the Prime Ministry in the presence of Prime Minister Samir Rifai, some 56 staff will be trained as nuclear engineers and technicians in reactor operation and maintenance, radioisotope production, and radiation safety in South Korea and in the Kingdom.
South Korea also offered to provide training for regulators at the Nuclear Safety Academy through Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety, KAERI Vice President Jae Joo Ha indicated.
Under the agreement, Jordan has the exclusive rights to reexport the technology after 20 years, paving the way for the potential development of a local nuclear industry, officials indicated.
Jordan may follow the model of South Korea, which went from a 100-kilowatt nuclear research reactor in the 1950s to operating 20 reactors domestically. As of this year, South Korea has become a nuclear technology supplier, embarking on projects in the Kingdom and the UAE.
“At the end of the day, we would like to move from nuclear technology users to developers within 20 years time, but this would take hard work,” Toukan told The Jordan Times.
Jae expressed hope that long-term cooperation will continue between the Kingdom and South Korea.
“We are not just supplying technology, then leaving. We want to help Jordan develop a successful programme over time and make similar achievements to Korea,” he said, underlining that South Korea took some 50 years between embarking on its nuclear research reactor and exporting technology.
“We think Jordan can make this leap in a much shorter time,” Jae added.
South Korean officials also highlighted the South Korea-constructed APR1000 reactor as a potential technology for Jordan’s commercial power plants.
The research reactor is an important precursor to the Kingdom’s first nuclear reactor (1,000MW Generation III) expected to be built on a site outside of Aqaba within the next decade.
Source: http://www.jordantimes.com/?news=25329
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