Egypt and Russia confirmed this week that they have started studying the possibility of building two additional reactors at Egypt’s Dabaa nuclear power plant.
Electricity Minister Mahmoud Esmat said that President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi “directed the government to probe the possibility of increasing the number of reactors at the Dabaa plant.”
The ministry has already started negotiations with the Russian company Rosatom to add two new reactors, Esmat said, adding that “we may even add four additional reactors.”
He said that the expansion of the Dabaa plant aims to reduce the gas import bill used to operate conventional power plants. “Every 4.8 Gigawatts of nuclear electricity helps save eight million cubic metres of gas. This will reduce the import bill by between $1.1 and $3.4 billion every year,” Esmat said.
He explained that the expansion reflects Egypt’s intention to double new and renewable power projects to contribute to diversifying the country’s energy sources and reducing the dependence on fossil fuels.
The minister’s statement came following a visit to Russia last week, where he met with Alexei Likhachev, director-general of the Russian State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom, in the city of Nizhny Novgorod.
Esmat and Likhachev stressed the importance of continued coordination and cooperation between the Egyptian and Russian teams to ensure adherence to the specified timetable and achieve the highest standards of quality and nuclear safety throughout the various stages of the construction of the Dabaa plant.
In press statements this week Likhachev said that Rosatom is negotiating with Egypt the construction of two additional units at the Dabaa plant. “We also agreed that the first unit at the plant will start operating in 2028 and will be connected to Egypt’s electrical grid as scheduled,” he said.
Esmat indicated that cooperation with Russia in the field of nuclear energy is not limited to the Dabaa nuclear power plant and building additional units there but also extends to deploying floating nuclear power plants and small and medium-sized nuclear reactors as part of Egypt’s long-term nuclear strategy.
Likhachev explained that floating nuclear power plants (FNPPs), which Egypt intends to develop in the future, are compact nuclear reactors that are installed on ships or offshore platforms specifically designed for this purpose.
They are capable of generating electricity and, in many cases, producing desalinated water and providing central heating, he said, adding that unlike conventional land-based nuclear power plants, the reactors can be deployed in coastal areas and islands, remote industrial sites, and areas with limited energy infrastructure, providing reliable, carbon-free electricity without the need for large-scale construction on land.
Likhachev stated that Rosatom is currently developing a new generation of FNPPs based on its more advanced RITM-200 reactors, which provide about 55 Megawatts per reactor, and are characterised by higher efficiency, longer operating life, and simplified maintenance operations.
In Moscow, Esmat visited a Rosatom factory that specialises in the manufacture and assembly of small nuclear reactors and FNPPs.
He said that within the framework of its strategic relations with Russia, Egypt is keen to benefit from advanced Russian expertise and technologies in the field of the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, while studying various modern nuclear applications and technologies that can contribute to supporting development plans in Egypt.
“Egypt is interested in deploying small nuclear reactors as they represent a very promising technology due to the flexibility they offer and in support of Egypt’s intention of diversifying its energy sources and enhancing the security and sustainability of its electricity supplies,” Esmat said.
He said that his meeting with Rosatom officials had also included discussion of a seawater desalination project at Dabaa.
“This project not only aims to provide the water needed by the Dabaa nuclear power plant but also represents an integrated development project to serve Dabaa itself and the surrounding areas and to provide a sustainable source of desalinated water that supports development plans, urban expansion, and economic and industrial activities,” he added.
The Dabaa nuclear power plant, 170 km to the west of Alexandria and 320 km to the northwest of Cairo, includes four nuclear reactors with a total capacity of 4,800 Megawatts (4.8 Gigawatts), with each one having a capacity of 1,200 Megawatts. The first nuclear reactor is scheduled to start operating in 2028, followed by the other reactors in 2030.
Egypt and Russia signed a cooperation agreement in November 2015 to establish the plant at a cost of $25 billion, which Russia provided as a soft government loan to Egypt. In December 2017, the two countries signed the final agreement to build the plant.
Prime Minister Mustafa Madbouli said Egypt aims to accelerate the implementation rates of the Dabaa project to complete it according to the scheduled timetable.
Addressing a ceremony marking the installation of the vessel for the second nuclear reactor last July, Madbouli said that “peaceful nuclear energy represents an Egyptian strategic option that supports the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, as it provides a safe and stable source of electricity in addition to its role in reducing carbon emissions and supporting efforts to confront climate change.”
According to Gamal Al-Qalubi, a professor of energy engineering at the American University in Cairo, the government is racing against time to double electricity production from renewable sources, particular nuclear power stations, in the light of the energy challenges currently facing the region and the world and the high cost of imported gas and oil.
Former Egyptian Nuclear Power Plants Authority vice president Ali Abdel-Nabi believes that “the Dabaa nuclear power plant can accommodate between eight and 12 reactors with a production capacity of up to 1,200 Megawatts per unit.”
He added that “expanding the project will require extensive studies to determine the capacity of the reactors that will be added and the safety of the plant.”
Abdel-Nabi told the pan-Arab Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper that “the main goal of expanding the Dabaa nuclear power plant is to increase electricity production capacity using modern technology and to expand renewable energy sources, thereby achieving energy security.”
Egypt is seeking to expand its renewable energy production “by reaching 45 per cent in 2028, instead of 42 per cent in 2030”, according to the Electricity Ministry.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 3 September, 2026 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly.
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