Nuclear Fission Energy Initiatives in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

As part of the Saudi energy sustainability plan in Vision 2030, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has decided to rely on multiple sources of clean energy, and one of the Kingdom's sustainable choices was nuclear fission energy. There has been a lack of published papers discussing nuclear energy initiatives in the Kingdom, and this motivates our research work. This paper will consider nuclear power initiatives in KSA, at first a discussion on the Saudi energy sector in Vision 2030 and how nuclear energy can be a leader of the sector. A brief description of the international requirements for building a nuclear energy program will be discussed. This will be followed by recommendations on what should be done to achieve an outstanding nuclear power program. Furthermore, suggestions to ensure a sustainable nuclear program are discussed, focusing on multiple challenges in the educational sector, such as societal views, expert development, training, and research centers. Moreover, discussions are on regulating technical support organizations (TSO), nuclear power plant safety, safeguards, and security. Additional topics like the nuclear fuel cycle, reactor site location, and lessons learned from similar countries, like the UAE, are discussed in the paper.