Saudi Arabia on Saturday announced plans to build a new centre for nuclear and alternative energy technologies aimed at diversifying power generation away from its oil and natural gas wealth. Former commerce minister Hashem bin Abdullah Yamani was named to head the King Abdullah City for Nuclear and Renewable Energies, to be built in Riyadh, in an announcement on the official SPA news agency.
While the Gulf kingdom has already been experimenting with alternative energy sources like solar power, the latest move confirmed its interest in nuclear energy. The new entity is to draft a national policy on nuclear energy development and will be responsible for supervising all commercial use of nuclear power and the handling of radioactive waste, the official statement said.
It pointed to high growth in demand for electricity from Saudi Arabia's mainly oil- and natural gas-fired power plants, especially for energy-intensive water desalination projects. "The use of alternative sources of sustainable and reliable electricity and desalinated water production reduces the reliance on hydrocarbon resources, and thus provides an additional guarantee for the production of water and electricity in the future," the statement said. While Saudi Arabia has the world's largest proven oil reserves and huge hydrocarbon riches, high population growth and heavy energy subsidies have driven up domestic oil and gas consumption at a rate that has sparked concern among planners.