The UAE built four nuclear power stations in 15 years. Why can’t Australia? By James.

The UAE had no nuclear engineers. No regulator. No nuclear history. In 2009, it decided to build four nuclear reactors anyway.

By 2024, all four were operating. Delivered on time, on budget, and cleaner than almost anything else on the grid. [Check: they were three years late and likely somewhat over budget, just far less so than many Western projects. It’s all realtive, I suppose.]

While many in the West called it impossible, the UAE built it. 5,600 MW of capacity. About 25% of national electricity.

So what made Barakah work, and why is the world struggling to replicate it?

First, they built in sequence. Units 1 through 4 were staggered roughly a year apart. The same workforce moved from one unit to the next, carrying forward lessons in real time. By the fourth unit, construction and commissioning timelines had improved dramatically. This is what an industrial learning curve looks like. Most countries build reactors as isolated projects spaced years apart, which resets that curve every time.

Second, they chose a single, experienced vendor and maintained clear accountability. KEPCO brought a standardized, proven design. ENEC, as the national entity, retained control and continuity. No fragmented contracting, no diffusion of responsibility.

Third, they built the regulator before the reactors. FANR was established years ahead of construction. Hundreds of inspections and extensive international reviews ensured that safety was embedded from the start, not layered on later.

This is a country like Australia built on hydrocarbons, yet choosing reliable baseload power for domestic stability. It wasn’t driven by ideology. It was driven by the fact that they needed reliable power and made a decision to get it.

Compare that with ongoing debates in the UK around Hinkley Point C, or cost overruns at Vogtle in the US. In the same period, the UAE moved from zero to 5.6 GW of nuclear capacity in just over a decade. The gap is not technological. It comes down to political will, institutional clarity, and an industrial approach to delivery. Nuclear does not have to be slow. Barakah shows what is possible.

Why can’t Australia do the same? The answer surely starts with Chris Bowen: