South Africa Announces New Nuclear Power Stations Amid Energy Crisis

Opposition Criticizes Plan, Alleging Links to Russia; First Unit Expected to be Operational by 2032

South Africa's government has announced plans to build new nuclear power stations to address the country's ongoing energy crisis and frequent blackouts.
The new nuclear power stations are expected to generate an additional 2,500 megawatts of electricity, with the first unit projected to be operational by 2032 or 2033.
The main political opposition party has criticized the plan, alleging that Russian state-owned nuclear agency Rosatom is the government's preferred partner for the project.
This criticism is linked to a controversial $76 billion nuclear deal South Africa signed with Russia in 2014, which was later cancelled by a South African court for being illegal and unconstitutional.
The announcement of the new nuclear power stations follows the South African government's approval of an agreement with Russian bank Gazprombank to restart a gas-to-liquids oil refinery on South Africa's south coast.