Turkish Atomic Energy Authority (TAEK) granted the country’s first nuclear power plant, Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) a construction license on Monday for the first unit of the plant.
The plant will be built by Russian State Nuclear Energy Agency Rosatom and will compose of four units each with a capacity of 1,200 megawatts.In the first phase of construction, two units are planned with a capacity of 2,400 megawatts.
The plant, with a total investment cost of about $20 billion, will have a working life of 8,000 hours per year.
The Akkuyu NPP will produce 35 billion kilowatts of electricity at full capacity, which will cover about 10 percent of Turkey's electricity needs.
The plant has an operational date set for the first reactor by 2023, while the plant is expected to be up and running at full capacity by 2025.
The area of Akkuyu NPP was licensed by the Atomic Energy Commission in 1976 and the location report was updated and approved in December 2013, according to TAEK.
"As an important part of the project, the construction license process, which started nearly three years ago, being completed… It has been decided by TAEK to grant a construction license for the first unit of Akkuyu NPP." the atomic energy authority said.
Last year, following the "positive decision" of Environmental Impact Assessment by the Ministry of Environment and Urbanization, and the "production license" by the Energy Market Regulatory Authority, the "limited work permit" was given for the first unit of the plant. After receiving the permits, the underground work of the reactor building started.
The project started with the intergovernmental agreement signed between Turkey and Russia on May 12, 2010.
At present, around the world there are 450 nuclear power plants operating in 31 countries, while 55 plants are under construction. The number of power plants under construction will be 56 with Akkuyu NPP.
(Anadolu Agency)
