Algeria and France on Tuesday signed a cooperation accord on civil nuclear energy during a visit by French President Nicolas Sarkozy to Algiers, officials said. Sarkozy travelled to the North African country seeking to expand trade relations with the former French colony.
The nuclear deal must be endorsed by the European Union in Brussels, which has to verify it conforms with the Euratom treaty which seeks to protect the population from harmful radioactivity effects. Opec oil exporter Algeria is looking at generating nuclear energy and could start building a power plant within the next 10 years, its energy minister Chakib Khelil said last month.
Any construction of a power plant would be years away because Algeria does not have a law governing nuclear energy, needs to train people and must select a location away from populated and earthquake-prone areas, he said.
A number of countries, including major oil exporters, are showing interest in nuclear energy, which has become more competitive as oil prices have climbed to record levels.
Advocates of nuclear power say that its generation does not produce carbon emissions, blamed for warming the planet. Opponents are concerned about safety and disposal of nuclear waste that remains toxic for thousands of years. In July, after agreeing to nuclear cooperation with Libya, Sarkozy said the West should trust Arab states to develop such technology for peaceful purposes or risk a war of civilisations.
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