Egypt still mulling offers from Russia and other countries to set up first nuclear plant

Egypt said its negotiations with Russia to set up a power-generating nuclear plant on the Mediterranean coast are still ongoing, as Cairo is mulling offers from other states to establish the mega project.

Cairo and Moscow signed a memorandum of understanding to jointly build Egypt’s first nuclear power plant during Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to Cairo in February.

The Egyptian presidency said that negotiations on the specifics of the prospective deal are currently being debated.

“Negotiations on the financial and technical aspects of the Russian offer are underway so Egypt can make the best choice to set up the plant with the best specifications in the shortest possible time,” presidential spokesperson Alaa Youssef said on Wednesday, state news agency MENA reported.

Youssef added that Egypt is also studying offers it has received from other countries and is comparing between them, saying that Cairo and Moscow have not yet agreed to sign a deal.

The plant would be located at an existing nuclear site in Dabaa on the Mediterranean coast, west of the port city Alexandria.

President Putin also told reporters on Wednesday that experts from both countries are still working on the details of the joint project.

Egypt has had plans for decades to build a nuclear plant in Dabaa to produce electricity but they have repeatedly been held back. The project was revived in 2013 under the interim president at the time, Adly Mansour.

The country has sought to boost its electricity generation amid a serious power shortage that has caused frequent blackouts in recent years, though they have noticeably eased this summer.