President Donald Trump formally submitted a proposed 30-year nuclear energy agreement with Saudi Arabia to the U.S. Congress on Monday, initiating a 90-day review period under the Atomic Energy Act. The deal, finalized in July, would permit U.S. companies to export civilian nuclear technology to Saudi Arabia, including the construction of AP1000 reactors—a project estimated to be worth tens of billions of dollars and benefiting Westinghouse, which is jointly owned by Canada-based Cameco and Brookfield Asset Management.
The agreement was transmitted to Congress by the U.S. Department of Energy, with a U.S. official confirming the submission to multiple outlets. The official stated that the pact is consistent with the Atomic Energy Act and reiterated that the deal will proceed only if Saudi Arabia joins the Abraham Accords, a condition Trump first introduced after the agreement was signed. The Abraham Accords refer to U.S.-brokered normalization agreements between Israel and several Arab and Muslim-majority nations, including the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan.
Congressional Review Process
Congress now has 90 days of continuous session to review the agreement, which would take effect unless either chamber objects. The review period can be paused, a mechanism that has been used in past nuclear cooperation agreements. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee and House Foreign Affairs Committee are the primary bodies overseeing the review. A U.S. Energy Department spokesperson confirmed that the deal was signed on July 22 by Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Saudi Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman.
Key Conditions and Contingencies
The Trump administration has repeatedly tied the nuclear deal’s implementation to Saudi Arabia’s recognition of Israel through the Abraham Accords. A U.S. administration official told Reuters that this condition remains unchanged, despite earlier diplomatic efforts under the Biden administration that nearly secured normalization before the October 2023 escalation of the Israel-Gaza conflict. Saudi Arabia has since demanded an irreversible path to a Palestinian state as a prerequisite for normalization.
Reactor Details and Economic Implications
The agreement outlines the construction of AP1000 reactors, a design developed by Westinghouse Electric Company. The reactors are part of a broader civilian nuclear cooperation framework that would allow U.S. firms to participate in Saudi Arabia’s nuclear energy sector. The project’s scale and financial implications have drawn attention from industry analysts, with the 30-year duration of the pact highlighting its long-term strategic and economic significance.
Saudi Response and Diplomatic Context
The Saudi embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the deal’s submission to Congress. The agreement was reached amid ongoing discussions about Saudi Arabia’s nuclear ambitions and its broader regional diplomacy. The Abraham Accords condition introduced by Trump adds a new layer to the deal, which was originally negotiated without this stipulation. The administration’s insistence on this requirement reflects broader U.S. foreign policy priorities in the Middle East, including efforts to expand normalization agreements between Israel and Arab states.
Policy and Proliferation Concerns
The deal has also sparked discussions about nuclear non-proliferation risks, with experts warning that civilian nuclear technology could be repurposed for military use. The Atomic Energy Act requires such agreements to undergo congressional review to mitigate these risks. The Trump administration has emphasized that the pact prohibits uranium enrichment in Saudi Arabia, a claim Trump reiterated in a social media post last month. However, the specifics of how this prohibition would be enforced remain a subject of debate among policymakers and analysts.