Jordan Atomic Energy Commission Initiates EIA and Feasibility Studies For Aqaba Nuclear Power Plant

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The Jordan Atomic Energy Commission (JAEC) has launched an environmental impact assessment and feasibility studies for the country's first nuclear power plant. Located in the southern part of the Aqaba governorate, the potential site for the nuclear plant is 20-25 kilometers from the port city of Aqaba and 9 kilometers from the shores of the Gulf itself, at an elevation of 450 meters. The location is also close to basic infrastructure and resource hubs such as the Aqaba Port and the national power grid and has access to the vast water source of the Red Sea.

The site studies will last 24 months and will be conducted by Tractebel Engineering-GDF Suez (Brussels, Belgium). Under the recent $12 million contract awarded by JAEC, Tractebel will carry out comprehensive studies to assess soil characteristics, geological stability, and natural and induced risks associated with the venture. The firm will also map water requirements and water sources in the region and estimate the project's impact on the environment and public health. In addition, Tractebel will analyze safety and security requirements.

Subsequent to determining the suitability of the site, environmental and safety studies will last for 18 months. While eco-studies will take into account the marine biodiversity of the region, the safety studies are reported to cover access routes and flight patterns in the area.

The site selection and study will be handled by a consortium of companies headed by Tractebel and comprising Arab Consultants Bureau (Amman, Jordan) and Bureau Veritas SA (EPA:BVI) (Courbevoie, France). The consortium will take into account both the past and potential industrial and demographic evolution of the region before arriving at a decision. According to initial plans, Jordan's Aqaba nuclear power plant is expected to be ready in the next eight years, with an international construction tender due to be floated in mid-2010, and actual construction operations scheduled to begin in 2012.

The proposed study has been planned for two reactors at Aqaba, while also considering the potential of the site to house up to six reactor units in the future. The Tractebel-led consortium will also evaluate the seismological stability of the site, as the Aqaba Port lies directly on a fault line of the Jordan Rift Valley. However, the fault line is not being viewed as a potential threat to the nuclear facility because of the distance between the two.

The Aqaba nuclear power plant will house third-generation reactors with an annual output potential of up to 1,000 MW, outfitted with the latest passive and active safety systems. Accordingly, JAEC is reportedly considering a range of international technologies, including Canada's advanced CANDU reactors, AP1000 pressurized water reactors (PWR) from Westinghouse Electric Company LLC (Monroeville, Pennsylvania), PWRs from France, light water reactors from Russia, advanced boiling water reactors operating in Japan, as well as technologies and processes from Korea Electric Power Corporation (SEO:015760) (Seoul, South Korea).

Jordan is also planning a second nuclear facility at Wadi Araba, but the venture is highly dependent on the Red Sea-Dead Sea Water Conveyance Project for water supply. The venture comprises three cohesive units: a desalination plant, a nuclear power plant, and the water supply canal. The success of the entire venture depends on the timely completion of Red Sea-Dead Sea canal, failing which the second nuclear plant will be shifted to Aqaba. The shift, in a way, is likely to be more economical, considering the resources already pooled in Aqaba could be utilized for the second nuclear plant.

In order to meet the fuel requirements of its nuclear ventures, JAEC has teamed up with Areva SA (EPA:CEI) (Paris, France) for an exploratory mining and geochemistry estimation exercise in central Jordan. The region is believed to house about 130,000 tons of uranium at a depth of 1.5 meters. The initial estimation, expected to take about 18 months, will be followed by a bank feasibility study spanning six months. Development of the uranium mine is expected to take another two years. Uranium extraction is expected to commence by late 2012. Another exploration venture is also under way in collaboration with China Nuclear International Uranium Corporation. Apart from mining projects, JAEC, along with Jordan Phosphate Mines Company (AFM:JOPH) (Amman, Jordan) is also working on the technology to extract uranium from phosphates.

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