Akkuyu nuclear power plant Unit 1 receives permission to start up

The Turkish Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NDK) has issued Akkuyu nuclear power plant a permit to start up its first reactor unit. The permit allows the project to move on to the next commissioning phases: starting up the unit, configuring its systems and conducting pre-operational tests. Together, these represent the final stage of nuclear power plant construction and form the basis for safe future operation.

Anastasia Zoteeva, CEO of Akkuyu Nuclear JSC, said: "Licensing is an extremely important phase that runs through every stage of a nuclear power plant's life cycle: site selection, design, construction, operation and decommissioning. In the case of Akkuyu NPP, Turkey's first nuclear power plant, we are going through all the licensing stages for the first time. At the same time, the national regulator is drawing on experience issuing licenses and other permits in Russia, where four similar VVER-1200 reactors are already operating successfully."

Last week, all the reactor internals for the first unit were installed in their designated positions to check that they conform to the design. The reactor, including its vessel head and control rod drives, is 19.3 meters high, 4.8 meters in diameter and weighs 600 tonnes. The next step in the licensing process will be to obtain an operating permit for the unit, which will allow nuclear fuel to be loaded into the reactor.

Importance of Akkuyu NPP and further construction plans

Akkuyu power plant, located in the southern province of Mersin, is Turkey's first nuclear power plant. Russia's Rosatom is building four VVER-1200 reactors there under the BOO (build-own-operate) commercial model. Under the terms of the intergovernmental agreement between Russia and Turkey, the first reactor unit must be started up within seven years of all permits for its construction being granted.

The construction license for the first unit was issued in 2018, and construction work began that same year. Nuclear fuel was delivered to the site in April this year, and Rosatom CEO Alexey Likhachev said the aim was to carry out the physical start-up in 2024. The 4800 MWe power plant is expected to meet about 10% of Turkey's electricity consumption, with all four units expected to be operational by the end of 2028 at the latest.