Lyudmila S. Bocharova

This article gives a general outline of the current state and perspectives of nuclear energy development in Arab countries. Special attention is paid to the reasons of utilization of this type of alternative energy and to analysis of existing plans for its development. Governments of a number of Arab countries expect it to become an important energy source in the future. The material analyzed in the article allows to conclude that the existing programs are too ambitious and don’t have a solid infrastructure basis yet. Taking into consideration the fact that the countries of the region significantly lag behind technologically and don’t have national human resources for nuclear power related projects, implementation of such projects is only possible with international assistance. Nevertheless, a number of Arab countries, namely the UAE, will be able to construct their own NPPs in the coming years. If such plans are realized, the issues of technological and geopolitical risks will become quite topical.