Akkuyu plans to start testing phase in September

ANKARA

The Energy and Natural Resources Ministry aims to begin in September the testing phase at Türkiye’s first nuclear power plant, Akkuyu, under construction in the southern province of Mersin, according to sources speaking to the media on April 17.

A high-level team with expertise and experience in nuclear technology from Russia is expected to arrive, they said. Under the supervision and control of this team, fuel rods currently kept under secure storage will be loaded into the plant.

The system will then be activated for testing, followed by a trial phase of electricity generation expected to last nine months.

Russia’s state nuclear energy corporation Rosatom is building Türkiye’s first nuclear power plant in Mersin under an intergovernmental agreement signed in 2010.

The facility will consist of four units, each with a capacity of 1,200 megawatts, bringing total installed capacity to 4,800 megawatts. The first unit was originally scheduled to be commissioned on Oct. 29, 2023, coinciding with the centennial of Türkiye.

The remaining units were planned to come online at one-year intervals. However, due to financing difficulties, the target date was revised to Oct. 29, 2024. Progress on-site did not proceed as planned and the Russia–Ukraine war further disrupted supply chains, negatively affecting material procurement and delaying completion of the first unit.

The testing phase is now projected for September or October. Following this, financing and supply issues have reportedly been largely resolved.

Funding is currently being channeled into the project through a clearing mechanism linked to natural gas payments between Türkiye and Russia.

According to ministry sources, preparations for the 1,200-megawatt first unit’s testing phase are underway, with the arrival of a Russian expert team expected. With their guidance, fuel assemblies currently held in secure storage will be loaded into the reactor, and the testing process will commence. Upon completion of this phase, a nine-month trial electricity generation period will begin.