Rosatom gets permit to build 2nd power unit at Akkuyu NPP in Turkey
MOSCOW. Sept 6 (Interfax) - Rosatom has received the main permit to build a second power unit at the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant in Turkey, the Russian state nuclear corporation told Interfax.
"Rosatom has received the permit to build the second unit," it said.
Rosatom received a general construction license for the second unit last year. It expected to pour the first concrete late this summer or early autumn, depending when the main license was received.
The first concrete for the first unit at the plant was poured almost immediately after the license was received, Rosatom chief Alexei Likhachev said in June. He also said the company expects to receive the main license for the third unit in approximately the first quarter of next year. The company has already submitted the whole set of documents for the third unit, he said. "Accordingly, it will be the same order: first the general construction [license], then the main license. I forecast that sometime at the beginning of next year we will get the main license," Likhachev said.
The company is trying to accelerate the schedule somewhat, he said. "You'll recall our Turkish partners' strong desire to launch the plant in 2023. For us it's very important to reduce the time between units as well, because this project is being implemented on the BOO [build-own-operate] model. This means that time is money in all senses of the word," Likhachev said.
"We might receive the main license for the third unit in the first quarter, and by that time, naturally, we'll file the documentation for the fourth," he said.
Akkuyu NPP is being built under a BOO arrangement where the Russian party is the owner of the plant. Rosatom now owns almost 100% of Akkuyu Nuclear. Project costs are around $80 billion.
The first concrete was poured at the Akkuyu NPP site on April 3, 2018, marking the official launch of the plant's construction. The first unit is scheduled to go into operation in 2023, when the Republic of Turkey marks is centenary.