meed-logo

line1 line2 line3
SIGN IN / REGISTER

Small reactors top nuclear agenda

25 August 2023

This package also includes: Mena pushes for nuclear future

 

Small modular reactor (SMR) solutions could offset concerns about capital expenditure, construction delays and spent-fuel reprocessing that large-scale nuclear power plants present.

SMRs are advanced nuclear reactors that have a power capacity of up to 300MW a unit, which is about one-third of the generating capacity of traditional nuclear power reactors, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency.

They can be factory-assembled, transported and installed in locations not suitable for larger nuclear power plants, such as industrial zones or remote areas with limited grid capacity. This makes them more affordable and easier to build than large reactors.

So far, there are only two advanced SMR installations globally, one in China and the other in Russia. The US’ NuScale is also working towards deploying its first modules in Idaho.

Saudi Arabia and Jordan have been considering deploying SMR solutions as part of their nuclear power programmes.

In 2020, King Abdullah City for Atomic & Renewable Energy (KA-Care) and South Korea’s Science & ICT (Information & Communication Technology) Ministry set up a joint venture to undertake the commercialisation and construction of South Korea’s system-integrated modular advanced reactor technology in the kingdom with the help of Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power.

Nuclear energy is having a revival moment as a recognised part of climate mitigation
Karen Young, Centre on Global Energy Policy, Columbia University

Seeking partners

Jordan, for its part, signed an agreement with Russia for the construction of two 1,000MW reactors in 2015, but the project was cancelled three years later.

Jordan is now considering small nuclear reactors and is talking to potential partners including Russia, South Korea, France and the UK to determine the optimal technical specifications and how to adapt the reactors to the Jordanian environment, Khaled Toukan, chairman of the Jordan Atomic Energy Commission, said in April.

Jordan hopes to use small nuclear reactors for water desalination and power production.

“We have done all the studies,” Toukan said at the time. “The infrastructure is in place, and studies on site selection and the provision of cooling water are in place. Now, we are comparing technologies and we want to get the go-ahead from the government.”

According to Karen Young, a senior research scholar at the Centre on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University in the US, “nuclear energy is having a revival moment as a recognised part of climate mitigation”. 

She says: “We simply do not have other ways of ramping up non-carbon energy production as easily. Technology innovations in SMRs, among others, make this look like a more viable option.”

However, SMRs are as yet unproven, points out Paddy Padmanathan, co-founder and vice-chairman of green hydrogen firm Zhero. He adds that solar and wind projects with battery energy storage systems cost significantly less, despite the subsidies some governments allocate to nuclear power plant projects.

We simply do not have other ways of ramping up non-carbon energy production as easily

Spent fuel

Regardless of a nuclear plant’s size, the storage or reprocessing of the resulting highly radioactive solid waste is a key safety and environmental concern. 

Nuclear reactors require ceramic pellets of low-enriched uranium oxide. These are stacked vertically and encased in metallic cladding to form a fuel rod. The fuel rods are bundled into fuel assemblies that are placed into the reactor. 

The fuel pellets remain in the reactors for five or six years of operation, or until the fission process uses up the uranium fuel. 

The US, which generates about 2,000 tonnes of spent fuel a year, stores the solid waste across 70 reactor sites in the country. Research and development into how to recycle spent fuel, or to design advanced reactors that could consume it, is also under way.

With 58 nuclear power plants generating over 70 per cent of its electricity, France produces nearly 1,150 tonnes of spent fuel a year. Unlike the US, France recycles spent fuel through a process that converts spent plutonium – formed in nuclear power reactors as a by-product of burning uranium fuel – and uranium into a mixed oxide that can be reused in nuclear plants to produce more electricity.

In Iran, meanwhile, the policy at the 1,000MW Bushehr reactor entails cooling down spent fuel in an onsite pool, a process that takes at least five years. It is then transported in steel cylinders that are welded closed to a central storage location in the country’s Anarak region.

UAE policy

The UAE government is developing a long-term storage policy for spent fuel from its Barakah nuclear power plant, the first reactor of which began producing electricity in 2021. The current plan involves placing the fuel assemblies in concrete and steel-lined cooling pools located at the Barakah plant, after which they will be stored in dry casks either on site or at a long-term storage facility.

According to Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation, the UAE still has plenty of time to make decisions about spent-fuel management, as the first batch of nuclear fuel will be stored for 20-30 years in the spent-fuel pool.

https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/11020048/main.gif
Jennifer Aguinaldo

Register for MEED's guest program now to access this article.

Click here to register
Exclusive from Meed
Related Articles
  • Contractors prepare bids for Petro Rabigh bottom-of-the-barrel project

    30 October 2026

     

    Contractors are preparing proposals for Saudi Arabia’s Rabigh Refining & Petrochemical Company (Petro Rabigh) for a major project to increase output and improve the efficiency of its integrated refining and petrochemicals complex in Rabigh, on the kingdom’s Red Sea coast.

    Petro Rabigh’s downstream complex, which is majority-owned by Saudi Aramco, includes a topping refinery with a 340,000-barrel-a-day (b/d) crude-distillation unit, a 47,000 b/d hydrotreater, a 12 million-cubic-feet-a-day hydrogen plant, a 75,000 b/d naphtha Merox unit and a 60,000 b/d kerosene Merox unit. The complex also includes supporting utilities, product tankage and a marine terminal.

    The main objective of the bottom-of-the-barrel project is to convert low-value, high-sulphur fuel oil and heavy-residue streams – which account for about 20% to 22% of refinery output – into higher-value, cleaner products, including diesel and lighter distillates.

    Petro Rabigh aims to achieve residue-conversion capacity of about 64,000 to 75,000 b/d by adding integrated fuel-oil upgrading and diesel-treatment units.

    The company issued the main tender for engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) works earlier this year. Contractors have until 19 November to submit proposals, sources told MEED.

    The following companies are understood to be among those bidding for the project:

    • CTCI Corporation (Taiwan)
    • JGC Corporation (Japan)
    • Larsen & Toubro (India) / Technip Energies (France)
    • Tecnicas Reunidas (Spain)

    The overall scope of work on the project covers the construction of the following units:

    • A light-naphtha isomerisation unit
    • A deasphalting and dewaxing unit
    • An ebullated-bed processing unit
    • A sulphur block, comprising sulphur-recovery, acid-gas-removal, sour-water-stripping and sulphur-forming units
    • Sales-gas allocation facilities and associated pipeline works
    • Utilities outside battery limits
    • Auxiliary piping modifications
    • Utility and hydrocarbon tie-ins

    Petro Rabigh appointed Australia-headquartered Worley last year to carry out front-end engineering and design (feed) work for the bottom-of-the-barrel project.

    MEED also reported that Petro Rabigh appointed Worley to provide engineering and project-management consultancy (PMC) services for the project in the first quarter of this year.

    Under the contract, Worley will carry out engineering studies and PMC functions. It will also support the development of cost estimates, project-specific execution procedures and technical procedures in line with Saudi Aramco guidelines. The work covers both the design-basis scoping-paper stage and the subsequent feed stage.

    Petro Rabigh will draw on Worley’s expertise in design, procurement and processing technologies, including light-naphtha isomerisation; vacuum-residue processing through deasphalting and dewaxing; an ebullated-bed configuration integrated with the diesel-hydrotreating section; and unconverted-oil hydrotreatment.

    Worley recently confirmed its contract award from Petro Rabigh, saying it will deliver engineering, project management, procurement support and related consultancy services for projects across its client’s portfolio.

    The scope includes developing design-basis documents, conducting technical evaluations, preparing cost estimates, supporting feed tender packages and providing detailed engineering and execution-phase support as projects advance through development and delivery.

    The services will support the evaluation and development of potential new facilities and infrastructure across the complex, including process units, utilities, sulphur recovery facilities and associated infrastructure.

    “The work will help Petro Rabigh advance future projects aimed at enhancing the long-term value and performance of its refining and petrochemicals operations,” Worley said in a statement on 28 October.

    Separately, Petro Rabigh awarded US-based KBR a 10-year maintenance contract in February to support its polymer plants in Rabigh.

    KBR’s Technology Led Industrial Solutions business line will execute the operations and maintenance contract, sources told MEED. The business operates within the Houston-headquartered company’s Technology Solutions portfolio.

    In March 2024, Petro Rabigh also awarded KBR a similar five-year asset-condition-monitoring contract. Under that programme, KBR is providing predictive-maintenance services at Petro Rabigh’s main plant.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/21032785/main.jpg
    Indrajit Sen
  • Contractors submit Riyadh Expo KSA pavilion bids

    30 October 2026

     

    Contractors submitted bids on 25 October for a contract to design and build the Saudi Arabia pavilion at the Expo 2030 Riyadh site.

    The facility will include exhibition halls, VIP and protocol areas, event and performance spaces, meeting rooms, food and retail outlets, and back-of-house facilities.

    The pavilion will host exhibitions, cultural and commercial showcases and official events throughout the six-month expo.

    External public realm works are also included.

    Expo 2030 Riyadh Company (ERC), tasked with delivering the Expo 2030 Riyadh venue, issued the main tender on 19 May, as MEED exclusively reported.

    Earlier this week, ERC appointed UK-based Mace as procurement advisory consultant for Expo 2030 Riyadh, supporting procurement activities across the programme.

    Under the appointment, Mace will provide procurement services and advise on the management and delivery of procurement activities, with the aim of supporting the expo’s wider programme objectives.

    Expo 2030 Riyadh will run from October 2030 to March 2031 with the theme Foresight for Tomorrow, with host authorities projecting approximately 42 million visits.

    The masterplan covers 6 square kilometres, making it one of the largest sites ever designated for a World Expo event.

    Situated north of the Saudi capital, the site is located near the future King Salman International airport and will provide direct access to Riyadh landmarks.

    The Public Investment Fund, Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth vehicle, launched Expo 2030 Riyadh Company – a wholly owned subsidiary – in June 2025 to build and operate facilities for Expo 2030.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/21031590/main.jpg
    Yasir Iqbal
  • Oman announces $790m industrial investment deals

    30 October 2026

    Oman’s Public Authority for Special Economic Zones and Free Zones has signed 28 investment agreements worth more than RO304m ($790m) for new projects and expansions across the country’s special economic zones, free zones and industrial cities.

    The agreements cover more than 2 million square metres (sq m) of land and span industrial manufacturing, food production, logistics, recycling and commercial activities.

    About $383.6m of the investment has been allocated to industrial cities operated by the Public Establishment for Industrial Estates (Madayn). Sohar Free Zone accounted for $152m, followed by the Special Economic Zone at Duqm (Sezad) with $143.1m, Salalah Free Zone with $85.6m and Khazaen Economic City with more than $27m.

    The projects are expected to support Oman’s efforts to diversify its economy, expand industrial production and attract private investment in line with Oman Vision 2040.

    Investment deals

    In Sohar Industrial City, Atlas Steel will invest more than $291.1m in a plant producing iron and steel products on a site of about 440,000 sq m.

    Fujian Mancheng Industries & Investment will invest $52m in a ceramics facility covering more than 241,000 sq m. Other investments in Madayn’s industrial cities include an $18.2m phosphate and nitrogen fertiliser plant planned by Gulf Company for Organic and Biological Fertilisers in Raysut, as well as projects involving structural metal products, paper and corrugated cardboard, and oil and gas equipment and services in Raysut, Ibri and Nizwa.

    In Sohar Free Zone, Sohar Automotive & Advanced Industries Company will invest $98.8m in an automobile assembly complex covering 317,000 sq m. The complex aims to attract vehicle manufacturers, automotive supply-chain companies and advanced-manufacturing businesses.

    Voltamp High Voltage Transformers has announced a $39m investment in a plant that will produce power and electrical-distribution transformers for regional and international markets.

    Lalan Middle East will invest a further $3.9m to expand its medical-device manufacturing facility.

    ALSO READ: Oman’s Madayn prepares $637m investment drive

    In Sezad, Al-Jazir Feed Plant will invest $104m in a shrimp-feed facility to support an integrated shrimp-farming project.

    In Salalah Free Zone, Al-Nawras Industries will invest $50m in a steel-structures manufacturing facility, while Integrated Gypsum Company will invest $20m in gypsum-products production. Marai Dhofar will invest $15.6m in the production of Italian cheeses and other dairy products.

    Projects in Khazaen Economic City include a plant by Aleemit International Services to manufacture electric-vehicle chargers and components, with an investment of more than $8.8m, and a $6.5m facility by Joger Modular Building Technologies to produce precast-concrete building components.

    Additional investments in Khazaen include construction materials, ready-mix concrete, industrial units, logistics facilities and warehouses.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/21016368/main.jpg
    Indrajit Sen
  • Sabic swings back to profit in Q3 with $224m net income

    30 October 2026

    Register for MEED’s 14-day trial access 

    Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (Sabic) returned to profitability in the third quarter of the year, reporting adjusted net income of SR840m ($224m) as revenue and earnings improved from the previous quarter.

    The Saudi chemicals giant had posted an adjusted net loss of $100m in the second quarter.

    Revenue increased 14% on a quarter-on-quarter basis to $7.51bn, while adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) climbed 40% to $1.27bn. Adjusted Ebitda surged 434% to $578.67m.

    Sabic’s net debt stood at $808m as of 30 September compared with $728m as of 30 June.

    Adjusted earnings per share rose to SR0.28 ($0.07) from a loss of SR0.13 ($0.03).

    The recovery occurred despite persistent margin pressure across the global petrochemicals sector and heightened geopolitical risk in the Middle East.

    Additionally, Sabic said it achieved $949.33m of its broader portfolio optimisation programme target of $3bn by 2030 in positive recurring Ebitda impact from its transformation efforts.

    During the third quarter, Sabic received its Local Content Certificate for 2025 from the Local Content and Government Procurement Authority, recording a score exceeding 61% – an increase of more than nine percentage points over the prior evaluation period. The company attributed the increase to domestic procurement agreements, including a memorandum of understanding with Lenovo.

    Capital projects

    After several years of subdued project spending, Sabic is beginning to step up investment in new production capacity, with major projects reaching key milestones this year.

    In February, affiliate Petrokemya awarded China National Chemical Engineering Group Corporation the main engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for a new ethylene oxide catalyst production facility. The 4,000-tonne-a-year (t/y) unit at Jubail Industrial City includes catalyst carrier washing, drying facilities and associated utilities.

    Major ammonia-urea complex

    In September, Sabic Agri-Nutrients awarded South Korea’s Samsung E&A a $3.465bn EPC contract for its seventh production complex in Jubail Industrial City (San VII).

    The project will have an annual capacity of approximately 1.2 million metric tonnes of conventional ammonia and 2.6 million tonnes of urea, integrated with a post-combustion carbon-capture unit.

    The Ministry of Energy approved feedstock allocation for the project in March. San VII will expand the company’s total urea capacity by 54%, from approximately 4.8 million t/y to 7.4 million t/y.

    The development reflects a shift in project scope. Originally conceived as San VI – a low-carbon facility designed to yield 1.2 million t/y of blue ammonia alongside specialised nutrients – the scheme was re-engineered as a conventional ammonia and urea plant using carbon-capture systems to manage emissions intensity.

    Construction is scheduled to begin in the fourth quarter of 2026. Commissioning is slated for the third quarter of 2030, with full commercial operation targeted before year-end 2030.

    Sabic Agri-Nutrients positions the project as central to its 2040 strategy to expand export market share and support international supply chains.

    Greenfield methanol plant

    San VII is not the only major project moving forward.

    Also in September, Sabic subsidiary Saudi Methanol Company (Ar-Razi) secured feedstock approval from the Ministry of Energy to build a 1.8 million t/y greenfield methanol plant in Jubail.

    The project aligns with Sabic’s focus on scale in core petrochemical chains and provides intermediate feedstock for expanding domestic downstream manufacturing.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/21015944/main2510.jpg
    Indrajit Sen
  • Saudi Arabia’s NWC awards package 12 of sewage scheme

    30 October 2026

     

    Register for MEED’s 14-day trial access 

    Local contractor Al-Yamama has won the contract for package 12 of Saudi Arabia’s long-term operations and maintenance (LTOM) sewage treatment programme, sources close to the project have confirmed to MEED.

    It is understood that the contractor offered a levelised tariff of SR0.98 a cubic metre for the project.

    The state-owned National Water Company (NWC) is delivering the sewage treatment plant rehabilitation programme in two phases, including up to 19 packages.

    Known as the North Western B Cluster, LTOM12 was tendered last year, and bids were submitted in November 2025.

    Under the original scope, the contract covers the construction and upgrade of seven sewage treatment plants with a combined capacity of about 162,000 cubic metres a day (cm/d).

    In February, MEED exclusively reported that five bidders were awaiting a decision on the award.

    These included:

    • Alkhorayef Water & Power Technologies (Saudi Arabia)
    • Civil Works Company (Saudi Arabia)
    • Miahona (Saudi Arabia)
    • Beijing Enterprises Water Group – BEWG (Hong Kong)
    • Al-Yamama (Saudi Arabia)

    According to a source, NWC opened financial bids for the tender in April.

    The contract represents Al-Yamama’s first award under the LTOM programme. However, the contractor has previously worked with NWC on several water infrastructure projects and is continuing construction works on a treatment plant expansion project in Al-Khobar in the Eastern Province.

    Packages 10 and 11

    On 2 September, NWC announced the formal signing of a $347m contract with a Saudi-Chinese consortium for Northern Cluster Sewage Treatment Plants Package 10 (LTOM10). 

    LTOM10 was the first contract awarded under the second phase of NWC’s sewage treatment plant rehabilitation programme.

    The 15-year contract was signed with a tariff of SR0.69 ($0.18) a cubic metre.

    MEED exclusively reported in January that the consortium had won the contract, which has a combined treatment design capacity of more than 337,000 cm/d and covers plants across the Hail, Qassim, Al-Jouf and Northern Borders provinces. 

    The same consortium led by United Water (China) is also expected to formally sign a contract for LTOM11 in the coming months.

    NWC previously awarded $2.7bn-worth of contracts for the first phase of its LTOM programme. This comprises nine packages covering the treatment of 4.6 million cm/d of sewage water for the next 15 years.

    Under tender

    Two remaining packages in the LTOM programme are currently out for tender. As previously reported by MEED, bidders are preparing to submit offers for package 14, covering the upgrade of six existing sewage treatment plants (STPs), including a capacity expansion of 30,000 cm/d at the Al-Jarodia STP.

    Known as the Eastern A Cluster (LTOM14), the project will increase total treatment capacity from about 263,000 cm/d to approximately 293,000 cm/d, with an estimated cost of $180m. NWC tendered the package in April, and the latest bid submission deadline is 30 November.

    In the longer term, bids for package 16 of the LTOM programme are due by 3 May 2027. NWC tendered the contract earlier this month, as MEED reported exclusively.

    Under the original scope, the project is expected to cover the rehabilitation and upgrade of 14 STPs with a total design capacity of 153,000 cm/d.

    According to a source, bidders must first submit a letter of intent by 22 February 2027.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/21010688/main.jpg
    Mark Dowdall