Kuwait has signed an agreement for co-operation on the peaceful uses of nuclear energy with France, making it the latest Gulf country to explore the possibility of developing nuclear power.

Bernard Bigot, chairman of France’s nuclear energy body, the Commissariat a l’Energie Atomique, announced the deal at the Kuwaiti parliament on 14 January.

The 20-year deal covers the supply of nuclear material, equipment and facilities. It also includes provisions for training, exchange of technology information and research. 

French Economy Minister Christine Lagarde discussed the country’s nuclear plans with Kuwaiti officials during her visit to the Gulf state in June 2009.

In August 2009, Kuwait’s National Committee for the Peaceful Use of Nuclear Energy appointed Adnan Shehab Eddin as its secretary general. The committee also approved its founding document and its preliminary budget for 2009-10. Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser al-Mohamed al-Sabah chairs the national committee.