Saudi Arabia and the United States will sign a preliminary agreement of cooperation as the kingdom intends to create a civil nuclear industry, Energy Secretary Chris Wright told reporters on April 13 in the Saudi capital of Riyadh.
Meeting with Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman earlier on April 13, Wright said the two nations are on “a pathway” to brokering an agreement to work together in developing a Saudi civil nuclear program.
It was Wright’s first visit to the kingdom as energy secretary, part of a tour of the energy-exporting Gulf states of the Middle East. He said further information on a memorandum detailing the energy collaboration between Saudi Arabia and the United States will be released later this year.
“For a U.S. partnership and involvement in nuclear here, there will definitely be a 123 agreement. ... There’s lots of ways to structure a deal that will accomplish both the Saudi objectives and the American objectives,” he said.
A 123 agreement references Section 123 of the U.S. Atomic Energy Act of 1954 and is necessary to permit the federal government and U.S. companies to work with entities in Saudi Arabia to establish a civil nuclear industry.
Wright said Saudi authorities have not agreed to the act’s requirements, which set out nine non-proliferation standards that a state must maintain to prevent it from using the technology to create nuclear weapons or transfer sensitive materials to other states or entities.
Discussions on a deal with Saudi Arabia have been difficult, as the kingdom has resisted signing an agreement that would prevent the possibility of enriching uranium or repurposing spent fuel, which are both possible paths to creating a bomb.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has long warned that Saudi Arabia would follow Iran if the latter ever developed a nuclear weapon. This position has led to concerns among arms control advocates and some lawmakers over a potential U.S.–Saudi civil nuclear arrangement.
Wright did not elaborate on a wider deal with Saudi Arabia, which the Biden administration had sought, and included a civil nuclear arrangement and security guarantees with the aim that it could benefit relations between the kingdom and Israel.
The world’s largest exporter of oil, Saudi Arabia is looking to produce substantial renewable energy while reducing emissions, part of the crown prince’s Vision 2030 reform plan. Some portions of that energy are expected to be nuclear.
