Ammon News - AMMONNEWS - It was reported in March that the Jordanian Atomic Energy Commission (JAEC) and Russia's ROSATOM, the state-run atomic energy corporation, have agreed to develop Jordan's first nuclear plant in order to meet the country's energy requirements. This cooperation will see the building of two nuclear power reactors with a capacity of 1,000 megawatts each. Just over half of the cost (50.1 per cent) is to be met by the Jordanian government, while ROSATOM is expected to shoulder 49.9 per cent. Both countries are signatories to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and view this project as "the embodiment of strategic partnership." Jordan and Russia will have their own gains from the agreement but there are serious concerns about such cooperation.

For Jordan, the crux of the deal is to get nuclear energy to generate electricity for the power-starved country. With a water deficit of 1.4 million m3 per day, according to the World Nuclear Association, Jordan is striving to develop a desalination plant to provide for clean and potable water. This technology has been applied in various parts of the world by countries like Japan, India, Pakistan and China.

As the country is in dire need of cheap electricity, the government in Amman views nuclear energy as the most viable option. Jordan aspires to achieve self-sufficiency in energy and wants to reduce its dependency on imported fuel, which makes up 96 per cent of the electricity used in the country. Fuel imports of this nature can be and are affected by turmoil in the region. The head of the JAEC, Khalid Toukan, has expressed concerns about the serious energy crisis owing to Jordan's loss of oil supplies from Iraq due to the violence there and natural gas from Egypt, which is down to the unrest in the Sinai Peninsula, where the pipeline has been sabotaged. Nuclear power, he believes, is the solution for Jordan to move away from "total dependency" on oil and gas. Amman also aspires to match the Iranians by becoming self-sufficient in energy in the near future so that future generations are less dependent on external sources for energy; other Middle Eastern countries, such as Egypt and Turkey, are doing the same.

In 2012, Jordan established a Committee for Nuclear Strategy to develop a programme for nuclear power to provide 30 per cent of its electricity by 2030; this would be a boon since demand for electricity is likely to rise in the next few years. The strategy also aims to cater for Jordanian exports of nuclear power. The new nuclear cooperation deal is to develop a "state-of-the-art" nuclear power plant, which could encourage other countries in the region and maybe even beyond the Middle East to cooperate with Jordan and avail themselves of the same technology. As Jordan is a signatory to the NPT it can justify its right to pursue a nuclear programme for peaceful purposes under Article IV of the treaty. Moreover, any arrangement with the United States on nuclear cooperation would result in the implementation of the 123 Agreement, whereby Jordan would not preserve the right to Enrichment and Reprocessing (ENR), although Kamal Araj, the Vice-Chairman of the JAEC, said in 2013 that Jordan "wanted to retain the right for enrichment."

The Russian company is offering a build, own and operate system (BOO) similar to what it is offering to other Middle East markets, which further provides Jordan with scope to pursue a sovereign nuclear energy programme. ROSATOM has been in the nuclear energy market for several years, which is probably why Jordan believes that it will be reliable. One advantage for Jordan would be that following the Fukushima crisis, efforts have been made by many countries to ensure nuclear safety; ROSATOM claims that its nuclear power plants are "the world's safest" and are built around lessons learnt "post Fukushima". Jordan and Russia are both members of the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership, presently known as the International Framework for Nuclear Energy Cooperation, which strives to reduce nuclear waste and reduce the risk of nuclear proliferation.

ROSATOM has already sought to capture the Middle East nuclear energy market, namely in Egypt, Turkey and Iran. Following the imposition of sanctions on Russia by the West in the wake of the Ukrainian crisis, Moscow's search for new nuclear markets could provide some economic relief. These deals in the Middle East would help Russia to cope with the loss that the ROSATOM investment programme incurred following safety concerns after the Fukushima meltdown in Japan. In addition, ROSATOM can utilise the natural uranium found in abundance in Jordan. This would also be a good opportunity for Moscow to extend defence ties with Amman, an issue which was on the table for discussion last month.

Concerns
On the domestic front, nuclear energy has met with opposition, with critics claiming that the cost to Jordan would be prohibitive. Some opponents of nuclear energy per se have advised the government to concentrate on solar and wind energy for power. They are also worried that the nuclear power plants could hinder the daily activities of those who live in the vicinity of the proposed nuclear reactors. The question of national water shortages has been raised, which could have an impact on any nuclear energy programme. However, Khalid Toukan feels that this shortage can be overcome by using waste water from sewage treatment plants and water pumped from the Red Sea to cool the reactors.

On the international front, Jordan is an ally of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, which would not view its cooperation with Russia in a positive light, especially at a time when the US and NATO are at loggerheads with Moscow on several issues, ranging from the Ukraine crisis to support for the Assad regime in Syria. The cooperation may also not be taken lightly by Israel, which has actually been accused by the government in Amman of blocking Jordan's nuclear energy programme, although the two states have signed a peace treaty with each other.

There could well be concerns about Jordan using its nuclear energy programme to develop nuclear weapons, not least because it has encouraged many of its citizens to train in nuclear engineering and allied areas. However, owing to the fact that Jordan has already signed the Additional Protocol (AP) and ratified it as well, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Safeguards would apply, enabling the agency to keep a check on the programme at all stages.

*Middle East Monitor