Cairo: Russian state atomic energy corporation Rosatom has begun construction of Egypt’s first nuclear power plant, according to a joint statement from Rosatom and Cairo. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi and Russian President Vladimir Putin had signed the final agreement to build the plant at el-Dabaa, on Egypt’s north coast, five years ago. Rosatom chief Alexey Likhachev and Egyptian Energy Minister Mohamed Shaker on Wednesday poured concrete into what will serve as the base for the plant, marking a “historic event” for Egypt, said Shaker. Likhachev said that Egypt has now “joined the nuclear club.” The project, paid for with a loan from Russia, is expected to cost around $25 billion euros, according to the Egyptian media. It is planned to have four 1,200 megawatt reactors.
