Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar confirmed the plans of the Turkish authorities to launch the first reactor of the "Akkuyu" NPP in 2025.
"Our goal is to launch the first reactor of the "Akkuyu" NPP this year." The goal is to start producing electricity this year, albeit on a test basis. The start of electricity production in the first reactor is very important. “I hope this will be a historic moment for Turkey", CNN Türk quoted the minister as saying.
Bayraktar also announced that due to problems with the equipment for the "Akkuyu" NPP, due to the fault of the German company Siemens, there was a delay in the implementation of the project. "The problem is in "Akkuyu" and can be solved with the help of Chinese equipment, but it cost us a delay of almost a year and a half. That's why we are now seeing the consequences,“ said the Turkish minister.
Bayraktar reported earlier that the equipment for "Akkuyu", ordered from Siemens before the introduction of sanctions against Russia, never arrived at the nuclear power plant site. He also called the German company an unreliable supplier due to non-compliance with contractual obligations.
The "Akkuyu" nuclear power plant is the first nuclear power plant in Turkey, which is being built by the Russian state corporation "Rosatom". The "Akkuyu" project includes four power units with Russian reactors of the VVER III+ generation. The capacity of each will be 1,200 MW. According to the terms of the intergovernmental agreement, the first power unit of the nuclear power plant should be put into operation within seven years after receiving all permits. Taking into account the receipt of a license to build the first power unit in 2018, this deadline falls on 2025.