Russia is supplying four Generation III+ plants for the nuclear station
Russia has begun pouring first concrete of the second block at the Akkuyu nuclear power station in Turkey, Turkish energy minister Fatih Donmez was quoted as saying.
Mr Donmez was quoted by Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency and Russian state news agency Tass as saying Akkuyu-2 will begin commercial operation in 2024, one year after the scheduled commissioning of the first unit in 2023. First concrete was for Unit 1 in March 2019.
Akkuyu, near Mersin on the country’s southern Mediterranean coast, will be the first commercial nuclear power station in Turkey. It will have four Generation III+ 1,200-MW VVER units supplied by Russia.
Mr Donmez was quoted by Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency and Russian state news agency Tass as saying Akkuyu-2 will begin commercial operation in 2024, one year after the scheduled commissioning of the first unit in 2023. First concrete was for Unit 1 in March 2019.
Akkuyu, near Mersin on the country’s southern Mediterranean coast, will be the first commercial nuclear power station in Turkey. It will have four Generation III+ 1,200-MW VVER units supplied by Russia.
Press reports have put the cost of Akkuyu at about $20bn, although this has not been confirmed either by Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom or Akkuyu NPP, the company responsible for the project.
The Akkuyu project is being constructed according to a build-own-operate model under Russian management. An intergovernmental contract was signed with Russia for the four units in 2010.
The Akkuyu project is currently entirely funded by Russia, but in the future Russian companies are expected to hold a 51% stake alongside third-party investors.
