Some Arab countries have already begun the process of procuring nuclear power plants. The UAE was supposed to have its first nuclear power plant already, but there have been several delays. Saudi Arabia has discussedoptions with firms from South Korea and Russia and elsewhere, and Saudi Arabia even hired a French firm to conduct site assessments last year. At some point, the U.S. must realize that Arab countries are going to build nuclear power facilities to save their economies. It is up to the U.S. and its closest allies to convince these non-hostile Middle East countries to ensure that the technology can be used only for peaceful activities.
Some people argue that nuclear power is not necessary in a region rich with oil and sun, but these assessments are not accurate. Oil will run out. Saudi Arabia has larger oil reserves than any other Middle East country, and its oil is expected to run out in about 70 years. Currently, Saudi Arabia generates just under 40 percent of its electricity by burning oil. This is a waste of the economic resource and burning oil for electricity is also horribly unfriendly to the environment.
Many of the Middle East countries are also implementing plans for renewable energies, but these cannot power the growing cities, run the desalination plants at night, or keep the massive air conditioners running through the desert summer. Simply put, solar and wind power are not efficient enough to provide enough power, and there is no effective way to store power for use when the sun doesn’t shine, or the wind doesn’t blow. Unless and until solar and wind technologies and batteries improve drastically, they cannot only serve as supplemental fuels.
