Barakah nuclear plant to test sirens on Wednesday morning

Alarm will sound at 10am for three minutes before an announcement about the test

The UAE has issued an operating licence for the fourth and final unit of its Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant. FANR

Unit three of Abu Dhabi's Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant started commercial operations in February. Photo: Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation

A view of the Barakah nuclear site under construction in 2012.

Unit 1 being built in 2013 in the Western region of Abu Dhabi.

The Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation selected a Korean consortium in 2013 to build four APR-1400 reactors. Photo: Enec

Kristine Svinicki, head of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission, toured the Barakah site in November 2013. Photo: Enec

By August 2014, more than 55 per cent of construction at Unit 1 had been completed. Photo: Enec

The first nuclear reactor at Barakah in 2016. Christopher Pike / The National

The UAE's nuclear energy programme is based in Barakah in the Western Region of Abu Dhabi. Photo: Enec

Trainees learn to deal with potentially catastrophic scenarios at this simulator in Barakah. Christopher Pike / The National

Khalid Naqbi was part of the first batch of resident inspectors sent to the construction site by the Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation. Ravindranath K / The National

The Barakah nuclear power plant located in Al Dhafra region of Abu Dhabi will test its sirens at 10 o'clock on Wednesday morning.

The Nawah Energy Company said in a tweet on Tuesday that the alarm will sound for three minutes before an audio announcement will say: “This is a test. This is a test.”

Meanwhile, work on loading fuel into Barakah nuclear power plant's third reactor has begun, in the latest step towards full operational status.

A licence was granted on June 17 by the nuclear regulator for the third of four reactors, or units, as they are known.

The first two are already operational and provide clean energy to the national grid for homes and businesses.

When fully operational, the plant will prevent 22.4 million tonnes of carbon emissions every year.

When it begins to operate at full power within the coming months, the third unit will add 1,400 megawatts of zero-carbon emission electricity to the grid. This is similar to each of the other two reactor units, taking the country towards its goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.

Barakah has four APR-1400 Units. Unit four is in the final commissioning stages before construction is complete.