DUBAI — India and the UAE have broadened their power cooperation to incorporate nuclear as South Asia’s largest economic system appears to forge nearer ties with its key power suppliers.
On Monday, each side signed a number of agreements following the go to of Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to New Delhi.
The draft of agreements largely centered on power, notably oil, liquefied pure fuel and, for the primary time, nuclear power.
India, the world’s third-largest purchaser of oil, obtains about 51% of its crude imports from the Center East, accounting for round 4.85 million barrels per day. The UAE has traditionally been India’s third-largest supply of crude oil provide.
Nuclear talks
The most important shock within the cooperation agreements reached throughout the go to has been the inclusion of nuclear power points.
An MoU was signed between the Emirates Nuclear Power Company and the Nuclear Energy Company of India “to change experience in nuclear power growth,” the official Emirati information company WAM reported.
“India is likely one of the few international locations which has its personal nuclear reactors. India has its personal indigenous design reactor of about 700 megawatts capability, which it’s constructing in good numbers. So India does have sure experience in know-how,” Amit Bhandari, a fellow at Mumbai-based Gateway Home, stated.
Atomic ambitions
The UAE not too long ago added the fourth and ultimate reactor to its 5,600 megawatt Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant, the Arab world’s solely nuclear reactor. The challenge was spearheaded by a consortium led by South Korea’s KEPCO at the price of $20 billion.
It has been rumored that the UAE is contemplating constructing a second nuclear energy plant, in accordance with a report in Reuters in April. Whereas the federal government has not confirmed plans for added nuclear reactors, atomic energy is taken into account a viable clear various within the Arabian Peninsula.
Nuclear power is a key element of the UAE’s plans to transition its economic system away from oil and meet net-zero objectives by 2050 per the Paris Settlement.
By 2050, the UAE plans to extend the share of renewables to 44%, with fuel accounting for an additional 38% and clear coal and nuclear energy set to make up 12% and 6% of the power provide, respectively. With extra nuclear capability, the UAE will be capable of rely much less on imported fuel. The nation imports 2 billion cubic toes per day of pure fuel from Qatar through the Dolphin pipeline.
India, which has 8,180 megawatts of nuclear technology capability, is trying to at present treble the amount by 2031-32.
Indian nuclear design
The nation’s atomic energy sector makes use of heavy-water nuclear reactors of a barely older design.
The design, nonetheless, is economical. Bhandari famous that the Indian design of a nuclear reactor would value a mean of $2 million per megawatt of capability. Compared, Russian-made nuclear reactors would value $3 million, and Western reactors akin to these created by Westinghouse and Areva would value $7 million.
“There’s a very substantial value distinction,” Bhandari stated.
“One factor could be that I’m moderately sure that the [UAE] authorities could be considering of is how far more may they want, 10-15 years down the road, and what do they want for it? So I might not suppose that they are going to cease with the 4 reactors,” he added.
Strategic reserves
India additionally holds 5.86 million barrels of Abu Dhabi oil in its strategic reserves within the southern Indian metropolis of Mangalore. Abu Dhabi Nationwide Oil Firm and Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves wish to increase the present quantity of reserves as India stays involved about power safety amid excessive oil costs and rising Houthi assaults alongside the Crimson Sea and Indian Ocean.
Abu Dhabi Crown Prince’s go to to India additionally highlighted the elemental facet of the international locations’ relationship, which is “increasing financial cooperation,” Kabir Taneja, a fellow at New Delhi-based Observer Analysis Basis, stated.
“However there are, in fact, the opposite features to it as properly, together with power safety, countering terrorism or whether or not it is the security of sea lanes and so forth,” he added.
India and the UAE have additionally come nearer collectively by the BRICS financial bloc, which Abu Dhabi joined in 2023.
BRICS partnership
India — which has usually complained concerning the “Asian premium” included within the gross sales of oil from the Center East to Asia — is hoping for nearer financial and power ties as a member of this group.
India, which has a net-zero deadline of 2070, later than most world economies, foresees itself persevering with to import crude oil from the Center East, for which it hopes it could safe honest pricing.
“The EU is speaking about limiting the use or lowering the oil demand, whereas the curiosity of the UAE and Saudi Arabia lies in the other way,” Bhandari stated.
“So there may be an financial alignment which is already there. And I feel it is smart to be on the identical platform,” he added.
