3 Apr (NucNet): The Turkish Atomic Energy Authority has issued a construction licence for the first unit of the Akkuyu nuclear power station, with a groundbreaking ceremony expected to take place today, local media reported.
According to the state-owned Anadolu news agency, the project, which is to be implemented with the help of Russia’s state-owned nuclear corporation Rosatom, meets all necessary requirements.
The groundbreaking ceremony for Akkuyu, which will eventually have four Russia-supplied 1,200-MW VVER units, will be attended by Russian president Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan, reports said.
The station is to be built near Mersin on Turkey’s southern Mediterranean coast for €20bn under an intergovernmental contract signed in 2010.
Rosatom boss Alexei Likhachev said last week that Turkey is aiming to begin commercial operation of the first unit in 2023.
