The first reactor of Turkey's Akkuyu NPP may be launched in 2025

The first reactor of the Akkuyu nuclear power plant (NPP) in Turkey is planned to be launched in 2025. This was announced by the country's Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar on January 9 on the air of CNN Türk.

"We hope to receive the first electricity from Akkuyu NPP this year. The commissioning of all four reactors is planned by the end of 2028," said the head of the Turkish Ministry of Energy in an interview published on the TV channel's Facebook account (owned by Meta, an organization recognized as extremist in Russia).

According to Bayraktar, the power plant will cover the country's electricity costs by 10%. In addition, the operation of the reactor will help reduce gas imports for Turkey by 7.2 billion cubic meters per year.

The construction is based on an agreement between Russia and Turkey, which was concluded on May 12, 2010.

Earlier, on December 12, 2024, Turkey completed the installation of the turbine at the power unit No. 1 of the nuclear power plant (NPP) Akkuyu. It is noted that the completion of the installation of the turbine timed visit to the site of the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources of Turkey Alparslan Bayraktar and Director General of State Corporation "Rosatom" Alexei Likhachev.

On October 9, Anton Dedusenko, the head of the Board of Directors of JSC "Akkuyu Nuclear" reported that full-scale works have begun before the start-up of the power unit No. 1 of the Akkuyu NPP in Turkey, which is being built under the project of "Rosatom". The Akkuyu Nuclear chairman emphasized that the construction of the three remaining units of the NPP is in full swing. According to him, more than 34,000 people are involved at the site.

Prior to that, on October 7, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said that Russia is studying the possibility of building a second nuclear power plant in Turkey at the Sinop site and is preparing optimal solutions for the project. Novak also said that at the moment the possibilities of realization of power facilities in Indonesia are being studied.

In September, the dome of the outer containment shell, which is an important safety element, was installed at Akkuyu NPP. After concreting, the walls of the containment dome will be 1.5 meters thick. The station is also equipped with an inner shell, which serves as a support for pipelines and a polar crane.

On June 7, Director General of Rosatom State Corporation Alexei Likhachev said that the launch of the first power unit of Akkuyu NPP will take place in 2025. On April 23, Rosatom held a ceremony of shipment of a set of heavy equipment from the Russian plant Atommash for the third power unit of the Turkish NPP. At that time, the company specified that the plant is working on the production of key equipment for the fourth power unit. Also in April, Akkuyu NPP Unit 1 started full-scale commissioning works.