DUBAI: William D. Magwood, Director-General of the Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), has praised the United Arab Emirates as a real leader in the nuclear sector through its peaceful nuclear programme.

In statements to the Emirates News Agency (WAM) on the sidelines of the second day of the World Governments Summit (WGS) 2024, the international official added that the UAE sets an exemplary model for implementing nuclear power plants on time and on schedule, in addition to its pioneering capabilities in implementing work safely and without concerns about nuclear proliferation.

Magwood affirmed determination to enhance cooperation with the UAE in this field and to contribute to achieving the climate goals set to address climate challenges and their repercussions.

He noted that the global nuclear energy capacity contributed 12 percent of global electricity last year, with around 450 nuclear power plants around the world. He stressed the need to work to triple this capacity to reach 1200 gigawatts to support the global movement to address climate challenges.

He said that the analysis done by NEA will help address the climate challenge, but it is up to each country to perform.

He added, "We also see the potential for countries that have not previously built nuclear power plants to enter this market, such as countries in Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia. This requires a great deal of effort for these countries to enter these markets safely, and we need to work on these challenges from now on."

Magwood said that the future of global nuclear energy is very bright, despite some challenges that the world needs to address in order to overcome them. There is no doubt, he added, that strong cooperation in the climate field will bring huge investments that confirm the possibility of addressing all issues, including climate.

He expressed his hope to work with the UAE, thanks to the latter's visionary leadership in this field to build global cooperation platforms to achieve these goals.