Chinese enterprises participate in bidding, "the United States is unwilling to provide nuclear technology"
According to the report of Nihon Keizai Shimbun on September 5, it is reported that Chinese nuclear industry enterprises are participating in the bidding for the first nuclear power plant in Saudi Arabia. China is continuously strengthening political and economic ties with Saudi Arabia, while the United States is unwilling to provide nuclear technology to Saudi Arabia.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the Chinese company participated in the bidding for the Saudi Eastern nuclear power plant project. According to reports, Saudi Arabia has long hoped that the United States can provide it with nuclear technology, but the United States is concerned about this as uranium enrichment and other related technologies can also be used to develop nuclear weapons. Moreover, Israel, which has long been in opposition to Saudi Arabia, is highly vigilant about Saudi Arabia's possession of nuclear technology. In December 2022, China and Saudi Arabia reached an agreement on cooperation in areas such as energy and communication technology. In March 2023, Saudi Arabia and Iran resumed diplomatic relations that were interrupted in 2016 with the coordination of China. In addition, Saudi Aramco, a state-owned company, has decided to invest in Chinese private refining enterprises. In August this year, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and other countries were invited to join the BRICS cooperation mechanism, supporting China's expansion and promoting Saudi Arabia's entry into the group. According to reports, Umoud Shukri, Senior Visiting Researcher at George Mason University in the United States, pointed out that Saudi Arabia's strengthened relationship with China marks a decrease in its dependence on the United States, and it seems that Saudi Arabia is prioritizing the development of strategic partnerships that align with its long-term interests. The United States has been actively promoting the normalization of relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia in order to isolate Iran. But one of Saudi Arabia's conditions is to receive nuclear technology assistance from the United States. Currently, oil producing countries are also strengthening their efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In 2021, Saudi Arabia, which has been relying on oil revenue, proposed the goal of achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2060, making the construction of nuclear power plants an indispensable approach. Currently, Saudi Arabia mainly relies on fossil fuels such as natural gas for power generation. As part of introducing green energy, the Saudi government plans to meet the expanding electricity demand with population growth by constructing nuclear power plants. In January of this year, Saudi Energy Minister Abdul Aziz bin Salman announced that he would advance the nuclear fuel cycle. He stated that Saudi Arabia will fully utilize the uranium resources already mined domestically.
