Kuwait Times

Published Date: March 11, 2010
By Ben Garcia, Staff Writer

KUWAIT: Kuwait's Minister of Electricity and Water Bader Al-Shuraiaan has affirmed Kuwait's interest in acquiring and harnessing alternative energy particularly nuclear and solar power, predicting that these forms of energy would be in use in the country within seven years. Reactions in Kuwait to the news have been mixed, however, with some considering it a blessing and others deeming it a curse, while a number see it as both simultaneously. "For me, it's like a blessing and a curse at the same time," sai
d one Kuwaiti civil engineer on the prospect of nuclear energy. "It's a blessing because it could help Kuwait in coping with its electricity problems, but it's a curse if it falls into the hands of those who are irresponsible people. Unfortunately we have those here in abundance.

It has to be handled properly with great accuracy and no room for mistakes, because if we do have like a Chernobyl catastrophe, God forbid, it could wipe out our entire people. Remember that we only have this small piece of land to love and protect," he added.

The Chernobyl disaster occurred on 26 April 1986 at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic (then part of the Soviet Union), now Ukraine. It is considered to be the worst nuclear power plant disaster in history and the only Level 7 event on the International Nuclear Event Scale, according to Wikipedia. The accident resulted in a severe release of radioactivity following a massive 'power excursion' that destroyed the reactor.

Most of fatalities from the incident were caused by radiation poisoning. Large areas in Ukraine, Belarus, and Russia were badly contaminated, resulting in the evacuation and resettlement of over 336,000 people. Based on their report in 2005, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and World Health Organization (WHO) attributed 56 direct deaths to the incident and estimated that there may be 4,000 extra cancer deaths among the approximately 600,000 most highly exposed people.

Al-Shuraiaan has emphasized that safety and the peaceful application of nuclear energy will be uppermost in any introduction of nuclear energy in Kuwait, which is seeking approval and guidance from French nuclear officials, with France boasting 58 nuclear power stations, without any accidents in their history.
Another Kuwaiti citizen told the Kuwait Times that while he likes the idea of harnessing energy though nuclear technology, Kuwait is not yet ready to handle nuclear energy.

I am afraid we are not ready yet," he said. "The fact was witnessed by many of us recently, with the 'Mishref sewage disaster.' It was a crystal clear proof of our ineptitude. Let's face it, it's a fact and is now part of our history. I don't want that history to be repeated in an even worse scenario.

Speaking to KUNA on the sidelines of the Paris international conference on peaceful usage of nuclear energy, the minister affirmed that this source of power is clean and environmentally friendly. He reiterated Kuwait's wish to depend more on eco-friendly energy resources and reduce its dependency on polluting fossil fuels, noting the country's increasing need to raise electricity and water production levels.

Another citizen was less sure, however, about the benefits of nuclear power.
I don't like that nuclear energy thing," he asserted. "We have oil to market in the world. If many of us in the world resorts to nuclear energy, our oil will have no value and we will suffer after that. I don't like it at all.

Others are enthusiastic about the prospect of nuclear energy, though, with one fan, Kuwaiti astronomer Adel Saadoun, saying that it's an excellent suggestion and the best he's heard to date. "Think about the country and our children's future," he told the Kuwait Times. "How long are we going to have fossil fuel? For a very short period of time! Fossil fuel isn't forever; everyone knows, what will happen to Kuwait if we run out [of oil] tomorrow! We need nuclear energy to help secure the future of our coun
try's next generation.

A recent report from KUNA revealed that His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah has formed a special committee, chaired by Dr Ahmad Beshara and grouping academics and energy experts, to undertake the task of acquiring and implementing nuclear energy in line with international treaties and resolutions. Moreover, a special team has been assigned to choose a suitable site on in Kuwait to build a nuclear reactor.

On the issue of a solar energy plant, many agreed that such a plant should be built as soon as possible to provide support for the country in combating the regular power cuts during the summer period. "That should have been part of Kuwait's development plan a long time ago," said one Kuwaiti journalist. "Our country has never run out of sunshine, which is the basic component of a solar energy plant. This way, we could avoid power cuts during summer.