Sudan plans to build nuclear plant
Kharthoum expects nuclear reactor and plant to be operational by the year 2020.
Sanctions
Sudan has been an IAEA member since 1958 and can develop a peaceful nuclear energy programme with IAEA assistance.
Sudan’s economy has suffered under US sanctions since 1997 and from decades of warfare.
The African country has close economic and political ties with Iran, which is locked in a dispute with the US and some of its allies over its nuclear programme.
In defiance of the sanctions, Sudan has managed to hike oil production to 470,000 barrels per day, boosting growth.
It has also built dams along the Blue and White Niles, which merge in Sudan, to generate power, however, large swathes of the country remain without regular electricity.
Alternative sources
The Khartoum government announced in March that Sudan needed to look for new energy sources, not excluding nuclear power.
According to calculations by the government, Sudan may experience an acute lack of power in about 25 years if other power sources are not developed.
Earlier this year, Iran offered to transfer nuclear technology to Sudan.
“Iran is prepared to transfer the experience, knowledge and technology of its scientists,” Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Iranian leader, told visiting Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir in March.