SHARE In the US’s Idaho National Laboratory, nuclear engineers listen with interest to progress updates on the UAE’s nuclear programme, while they work on innovative small modular reactors to be installed underground. And last week, the culmination of a thirteen-year journey, commercial electricity generation began at the Barakah nuclear power plant in Abu Dhabi’s Western Region. The UAE has thus become the first Arab country to generate nuclear power. Its policy was announced in 2008 and construction began in 2012. Although the project took longer than expected, this is not unusual for nuclear plants. For a country launching its first venture, avoiding major schedule and budget overruns has been impressive. Its agreement with the US is considered as a “gold standard” to prevent non-proliferation of weapons-related technologies. When fully operational, Barakah will save about 21 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions per year, more than 7 per cent of the national total.