CONSULTING

finance, as well as its offer to take back spent fuel to Russia, 120 seems to have trumped all other
considerations and Jordan decided on two VVER light water reactors. According to the initial
announcement, Russia was to finance 49.9 percent of the nuclear power plant. 121 In
September 2014, JAEC and Rosatom signed a two-year development framework for a project,
which was projected to cost under US$10 billion and generate electricity costing US$0.10/kWh. It
is now envisaged the earliest that construction start would be 2019, 122 which would make
completion by the original objective of 2021 123 impossible and even the revised dates of 2023
highly unlikely.
This financing arrangement is being revised because JAEC is finding it very hard to come up with
its part of cost of the reactor. This was suggested by JAEC Chairman Khaled Toukan who told
Associated Press that the probability of the two reactors being built is “70 to 75 (percent) ... it is
not 90 percent” in a recent interview. 124 Earlier, in October 2015, Toukan told the press that JAEC
is “now in trilateral discussions and seeking strategic partners—technology providers as well as
finance partners”. 125 Among the partners mentioned by Toukan are the China National Nuclear
Corporation (CNNC), which is being approached to take on a potential equity stake, as well as
participation in the construction phase for the turbine islands and other aspects of the plant, the
Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, which is being approached for non-equity financing,
and Rolls-Royce about potentially providing cooling systems for the plant. 126 JAEC’s current
preference is for the equity stake in the project divided three ways with Rosatom and CNNC, and
Jordan itself taking the last third. Elsewhere, Toukan has suggested that China might fund an even
higher share, “not less than 50 percent”, according to one report. 127 For the JAEC part, Toukan has
set up the Jordan Nuclear Power Co., which is to raise funds on the trading market by selling
shares. 128 One reason that this arrangement might be attractive to Rosatom is uncertainty about
its own finances. Over the past year, its budget has been cut and the Russian government was
120 Rosatom, “Russia and Jordan signed Intergovernmental Agreement on NPP construction in Jordan”,
24 March 2015, see http://www.rosatom.ru/en/press-centre/highlights/russia-and-jordan-signedintergovernmental-agreement-on-npp-construction-in-jordan-5/;
and Ariel Ben Solomon, “Jordan and Russia
to sign $10b nuclear deal this month”, Jerusalem Post, 22 March 2015, see
http://www.jpost.com/landedpages/printarticle.aspx?id=394732, both accessed 1 July 2016.
121 AFP, “Jordan agrees deal for Russia to build nuclear plant”, Yahoo! News, 25 March 2015,
see https://www.yahoo.com/news/jordan-agrees-deal-russia-build-nuclear-plant-231404790.html, accessed
1 July 2016.
122 NIW, “Briefs—Jordan”, 18 April 2014.
123 NIW, “Newbuild—Jordan and Russia Move Closer on Newbuild Plans”, 26 September 2014.
124 Karin Laub, “AP Interview: Jordan Eager to Reach Nuke Deal with US,” The Herald, 4 July 2016, see
http://www.heraldonline.com/news/business/technology/article87545887.html, accessed 4 July 2016.
125 Anthony McAuley, “Jordan closes in on deal with Russia to build two nuclear reactors”, The National,
31 October 2015, see http://www.thenational.ae/business/energy/jordan-closes-in-on-deal-with-russia-tobuild-two-nuclear-reactors,
accessed 1 July 2016.
126 Ibidem.
127 Nuclear.Ru, “Toukan: China can fund not less than 50% of nuclear build in Jordan”, 16 September 2015,
see http://en.nuclear.ru/news/97045/?sphrase_id=3655595, accessed 1 July 2016.
128 Chaffee P., “Jordan Looks to China for Financing”, NIW, 2015.
Mycle Schneider, Antony Froggatt et al. 51 World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2016