The Kingdom’s first research and training nuclear reactor is expected to go on line by September at the Jordan University of Science and Technology (JUST) in Irbid.

Construction of the 5-megawatt reactor, which is being built by the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute and the Daewoo Group at a cost of $130-million, is almost complete and they are preparing for fuel loading, said Khalifeh Abusaleem. The reactor will be used to train JUST students to work in Jordan’s fledgling nuclear energy sector, added Abusaleem, who has a PhD in experimental nuclear physics from the Illinois Institute of Technology and will head the new facility.

As well as being used for training, the facility will also be able to treat low and medium nuclear waste produced by hospitals, medical clinics, and by the reactor itself.

Last year, Jordan signed a $10 billion agreement with Russia’s state-owned nuclear energy company, Rosatom, to build and operate the Kingdom’s first nuclear power plant, which is due to start operating in around 2025 and will comprise two reactors generating a total of 2,000 megawatts.