Al-Badr: Development Fund is a long-term partner in enhancing nuclear safety at Chernobyl

Rashid Al-Badr, Acting Director General of the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development, confirmed on Monday that the Kuwait Fund has been a long-term partner in international efforts to enhance nuclear safety at the Chernobyl site over nearly four decades.

This statement was made by Al-Badr during the Kuwait Fund’s participation in the Donors’ Conference for the New Safe Confinement rehabilitation at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine, held on Monday in Paris, the French capital.

Al-Badr noted that “since 1988, the Fund has provided four grants to support nuclear safety initiatives at the plant site, totaling approximately $15 million.”

In this regard, Al-Badr expressed his hope to continue cooperation with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and other international partners to review the proposed reform program, its financing requirements, and the necessary arrangements for its effective implementation.

The conference, organized by the governments of Ukraine and France and the EBRD, aims to mobilize $560 million (500 million euros) in international funding to restore and repair the New Safe Confinement and return it to full operational capacity following severe damage caused by a drone attack in February 2025.

For his part, Ukraine’s First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy, Denys Shmyhal, stated that his country is working with the EBRD to develop the necessary technical foundations to restore the facility’s full operational efficiency. He emphasized the importance of completing repair and restoration works by 2030, according to initial estimates, to prevent corrosion of the structure’s steel framework and ensure the continued operation of its containment and ventilation systems in fulfilling their vital safety functions.

For his part, French Minister of Economy, Finance, Industry, Energy, and Digital Sovereignty, Roland Lescure, affirmed that “France, as President of the Group of Seven (G7) and as a long-time donor, has placed this issue at the top of the international agenda following the G7’s repeated calls for a coordinated international response to mobilize financial support, both within and outside the group.”

On her part, Odile Renaud-Basso, President of the EBRD, said the conference would serve as “a crucial opportunity to examine the latest technical studies and proposed restoration and repair strategies, including indicative timelines and financing needs, as well as to review existing international commitments to secure new major pledges to support the restoration and repair program of the nuclear facility.”

The Kuwaiti delegation attending the conference is led by Rashid Al-Badr, Acting Director General of the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development, and includes Ahmad Al-Sabah, Observer for the Operations Department for Central Asia and Europe, along with Kuwait’s Ambassador to France, Abdullah Al-Shahin.