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UAE’s Nawah, French CERAP Sign Agreement to Support Barakah Plant

Barakah Nuclear Plant is set to produce 85% of Abu Dhabi's clean electricity by 2025. (WAM)
Barakah Nuclear Plant is set to produce 85% of Abu Dhabi's clean electricity by 2025. (WAM)
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UAE’s Nawah, French CERAP Sign Agreement to Support Barakah Plant

Barakah Nuclear Plant is set to produce 85% of Abu Dhabi's clean electricity by 2025. (WAM)
Barakah Nuclear Plant is set to produce 85% of Abu Dhabi's clean electricity by 2025. (WAM)

The United Arab Emirates’ Nawah Energy Company has signed an agreement with CERAP S.A to provide technical services to support refueling outages and online operations at the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant, Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (ENEC) said on Friday.

ENEC and the French Nuclear Industry Group (GIFEN) co-hosted the fourth edition of E-FUSION (Emirati-French Industrial Supply Chain Initiative for Nuclear), held as part of the French Nuclear Energy Day at the French Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai.

Representatives from local and international nuclear industry companies, government officials and energy experts met to discuss the growing opportunities for collaboration between UAE and French organizations within the nuclear energy sector.

The participants learned about the latest progress at the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant, the cornerstone of the UAE Peaceful Nuclear Energy Program, located in the al-Dhafra region of Abu Dhabi.

The plant is now more than 96% complete and is generating clean electricity around the clock with zero carbon emissions.

Barakah is rapidly decarbonizing the nation’s energy sector through the largest decarbonization effort in the UAE and wider region.

Unit 1 became commercially operational in April 2021, and Unit 2 of the plant was connected to the UAE grid in August 2021 and has recently achieved 100% power for the first time, as part of the power ascension testing, which happens prior to commercial operation of the Unit, anticipated in the coming months. Units 3 and 4 are in final stages of commissioning.

Leading representatives from companies in France and the UAE provided engaging sessions including a morning plenary session, thematic workshops, panel discussions and an evening reception.

The dedicated E-FUSION workshop highlighted the latest advancements in the nuclear energy sector within France and the UAE and demonstrated the close ties and benefits of Franco-Emirati commercial relations in the nuclear sector.

The attendees discussed the latest developments within the sector, as well as the future of innovation that supports efforts to tackle climate change and increase sustainability.

Launched by ENEC, EDF and GIFEN in 2019, E-FUSION is a partnership between ENEC and industrial partners, aiming at supporting an Emirati-French initiative to create a local supply chain for the nuclear sector. Business France is actively supporting this initiative.

CERAP is a leading European nuclear services provider with over 30 years of experience, operating in more than eight countries.

It partnered with its shareholder ENDEL, French leader in industrial maintenance and energy services, to offer a comprehensive range of specialized services to Nawah, ENEC’s joint venture operating and maintenance subsidiary, in the UAE.

Committed to localizations with the Abu Dhabi subsidiary NUSAM Limited created in 2021, CERAP and ENDEL are determined to share their expertise and support the development of the UAE’s nuclear supply chain.

The Barakah Plant is one of the world’s largest nuclear energy plants and meets the highest international standards of nuclear safety, security, quality and non-proliferation.

By 2025, it is forecast to be the largest contributor to cutting Abu Dhabi Emirate’s carbon emissions by 50% by 2050 and is set to produce 85% of Abu Dhabi's clean electricity by 2025.

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Business

Saudi Arabia Allows Contracting Exceptions for Firms without Regional HQ

The King Abdullah Financial District in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The King Abdullah Financial District in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Arabia Allows Contracting Exceptions for Firms without Regional HQ

The King Abdullah Financial District in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The King Abdullah Financial District in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Arabia has introduced greater flexibility into its investment environment, allowing government entities, under strict controls to safeguard spending efficiency and ensure the delivery of critical projects, to seek exceptions to contract with international companies that do not have regional headquarters in the kingdom.

The Local Content and Government Procurement Authority notified all government bodies of the mechanism to apply for exemptions through the Etimad digital platform.

The step is designed to balance enforcement of the “regional headquarters relocation” decision, in force since early 2024, with the needs of technically specialized projects or those driven by intense price competition.

Under a government decision that took effect at the start of 2024, state entities, including authorities, institutions and government-affiliated funds, are barred from contracting with any foreign commercial company whose regional headquarters in the region is located outside Saudi Arabia.

According to the information, the Local Content and Government Procurement Authority informed all entities of the rules governing contracts with companies that lack a regional headquarters in the kingdom and related parties.

Government entities may request an exemption from the committee for specific projects, multiple projects or a defined time period, provided the application is submitted before launching a tender or initiating direct contracting procedures.

Submission mechanism

In two circulars, the authority detailed how to submit exemption requests and clarified the cases in which contracting is permitted under the controls. It said the exemption service was launched on the Etimad platform in November 2025.

The service is available to entities that float tenders through Etimad. Requests for tenders launched before the service went live, as well as those issued outside the platform, will continue to follow the previously adopted process.

Etimad is the kingdom’s official financial services portal run by the Ministry of Finance, aimed at driving digital transformation of government procedures and boosting transparency and efficiency in managing budgets, contracts, payments, tenders and procurement. The platform streamlines transactions between state entities and the private sector.

Technical criteria

When issuing the contracting controls, the government made clear that companies without a regional headquarters in Saudi Arabia, or related parties, are not barred from bidding for public tenders.

However, their offers can only be accepted in two cases: if there is no more than one technically compliant bid, or if the offer ranks among the best technically and is at least 25% lower in price than the second-best bid after overall evaluation.

Contracts with an estimated value of no more than 1 million riyals ($266,000) are also exempt. The minister may, in the public interest, amend the threshold, cancel the exemption or suspend it temporarily.

More than 700 headquarters

More than 700 multinational companies had relocated their regional headquarters to Riyadh by early 2026, exceeding the initial target of attracting 500 companies by 2030. The program seeks to cement the kingdom’s position as a regional business hub and to localize global expertise.

When announcing the contracting ban, Saudi Arabia said the move was intended to incentivize foreign firms dealing with the government and its affiliated entities to adjust their operations.

It aims to create jobs, curb economic leakage, raise spending efficiency and ensure that key goods and services procured by government entities are delivered inside the kingdom with appropriate local content.

The government said the policy aligns with the objectives of the Riyadh 2030 strategy unveiled during the recent Future Investment Initiative forum, where 24 multinational companies announced plans to move their regional headquarters to the Saudi capital.

It stressed that the decision does not affect any investor’s ability to enter the Saudi economy or continue working with the private sector.

 

Business

IMF Board to Review Staff-level $8.1 Bln Agreement for Ukraine

The city's downtown on a frosty winter day, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine February 19, 2026. REUTERS/Alina Smutko
The city's downtown on a frosty winter day, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine February 19, 2026. REUTERS/Alina Smutko
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IMF Board to Review Staff-level $8.1 Bln Agreement for Ukraine

The city's downtown on a frosty winter day, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine February 19, 2026. REUTERS/Alina Smutko
The city's downtown on a frosty winter day, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine February 19, 2026. REUTERS/Alina Smutko

The International Monetary Fund on Thursday said its board ​would review a staff-level agreement for a new $8.1 billion lending program for Ukraine in coming days.

IMF spokeswoman Jule Kozack told reporters that Ukrainian authorities had completed the prior actions needed to move forward with the request ⁠of a new ⁠IMF program, including submission of a draft law on the labor code and adoption of a budget.

She said Ukraine's economic growth in 2025 ⁠was likely under 2%. After four years of war, the country's economy had settled into a slower growth path with larger fiscal and current account balances, she said, noting that the IMF continues to monitor the situation closely.

"Russia's invasion continues to take a ⁠heavy ⁠toll on Ukraine's people and its economy," Kozack said. Intensified aerial attacks by Russia had damaged critical energy and logistics infrastructure, causing disruptions to economic activity, Reuters quoted her as saying.

As of January, she said, 5 million Ukrainian refugees remained in Europe and 3.7 million Ukrainians were displaced inside the country.

Business

US Stocks Fall as Iran Angst Lifts Oil Prices

A screen displays a stock chart at a work station on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, US, April 6, 2022. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
A screen displays a stock chart at a work station on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, US, April 6, 2022. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
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US Stocks Fall as Iran Angst Lifts Oil Prices

A screen displays a stock chart at a work station on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, US, April 6, 2022. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
A screen displays a stock chart at a work station on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, US, April 6, 2022. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

Wall Street stocks retreated early Thursday as worries over US-Iran tensions lifted oil prices while markets digested mixed results from Walmart.

US oil futures rose to a six-month high as Iran's atomic energy chief Mohammad Eslami said no country can deprive the Islamic republic of its right to nuclear enrichment, after US President Donald Trump again hinted at military action following talks in Geneva.

"We'd call this an undercurrent of concern that is bubbling up in oil prices," Briefing.com analyst Patrick O'Hare said of the "geopolitical angst."

About 10 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.6 percent at 49,379.46, AFP reported.

The broad-based S&P 500 fell 0.5 percent to 6,849.35, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index declined 0.6 percent to 22,621.38.

Among individual companies, Walmart rose 1.7 percent after reporting solid results but offering forecasts that missed analyst expectations.

Shares of the retail giant initially fell, but pushed higher after Walmart executives talked up artificial intelligence investments on a conference call with analysts.

The US trade deficit in goods expanded to a new record in 2025, government data showed, despite sweeping tariffs that Trump imposed during his first year back in the White House.