Saudi Arabia is considering accepting a Chinese bid to construct a nuclear power plant for the kingdom. The U.S. has also been interested in building a Saudi nuclear plant. State-owned China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) has bid to construct a nuclear power plant in Saudi Arabia’s Easter Province, near the border with Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. The press reported the bid, citing Saudi officials familiar with the matter.
China’s foreign ministry did not confirm the report. A ministry spokesperson told a news briefing that “China will continue to conduct mutually beneficial cooperation with Saudi Arabia in various fields, including civil nuclear energy, while strictly abiding by international non-proliferation obligations.” CNNC did not respond to a request for comment. The foreign ministry of Saudi Arabia did not respond to requests for comments on the report.
Saudi Arabia has previously requested U.S. cooperation in establishing a civilian nuclear program on its soil as part of a possible normalization deal with Israel. U.S. officials have said in the past that they would share nuclear power technology only if the agreement prevents the enrichment of uranium or reprocessing of plutonium made in reactors. These are two routes to the construction of nuclear weapons. Saudi officials acknowledged that considering the Chinese bid was a way of pressuring the Biden administration to compromise on its non-proliferation requirements.
Saudi officials said that they would prefer contracting South Korean state utility Korea Electric Power (KEP) to construct the plant’s reactors and involve U.S. operation expertise. However, the Saudis are reluctant to agree to the proliferation controls that the U.S. generally requires. The Saudis said that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was prepared to move ahead with the Chinese company in the near future if talks with the U.S. fail.
Israel’s energy minister has voiced opposition to the idea of Saudi Arabia developing a civilian nuclear program as part of any U.S. efforts to establish closer Israeli-Saudi relations. Israel has said that it expects to be consulted by the U.S. on any U.S.-Saudi deal affecting its national security. Israel is outside the Voluntary Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and has no nuclear power. It is believed that Israel has over a hundred nuclear weapons in its arsenal.
Saudi Arabia has developed closer relations with China over the past year. Last March, China assisted in a resumption of ties between Saudi Arabia and its long-time enemy Iran. China and Saudi Arabia have extensive trade relation in the energy field. China is the biggest importer of crude oil and Saudi Arabia is the biggest exporter.
State-run China Energy Engineering Corporation (CEEC) is constructing a two and a half gigawatt solar power station in Al Shuaiba alongside Saudi utility developer ACWA Power. This will be the biggest solar project in the Middle East.
Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Saudi Arabia last December. This was described by China’s foreign ministry as an “epoch-making milestone in the history of the development of China-Arab relations”. However, Saudi Arabia has tried to maintain a balance between China and the U.S. The U.S. remains Saudi Arabia’s most important security partner.
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