Turkey’s Erdogan Declares Nation as Nuclear Power on Momentous Day

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that his country has entered the club of world nuclear powers.

Today, Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan took part via video link in the nuclear fuel loading ceremony at the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant, Turkey’s first nuclear power plant.

Putin: Turning Turkey into a nuclear power will benefit Turkey’s energy market

The Russian President said that turning Turkey into a nuclear state would benefit the Turkish energy market, and noted that the Akyuyu project is the most important project between Russia and Turkey, which allows developing economic and good neighborly relations between the two countries. two countries.

Putin said that Russian-Turkish relations had never reached such a level, and expressed appreciation for the Turkish president’s role in the Akkuyu plant project.

Putin stressed that the most important thing is that the project is environmentally friendly and does not involve the use of carbon fuel, noting that the volume of trade between the two countries last year exceeded $62 billion.

He stressed that Russia will do everything in its power to meet Turkey’s natural gas needs, and also expressed his country’s readiness to provide assistance in all necessary requirements for Turkey’s recovery from the consequences of the devastating earthquake. He also indicated that he had discussed with the President of Turkey the issue of increasing the supply of agricultural products.

Before the ceremony, Putin held a telephone conversation with Erdogan, during which he thanked him for Russia’s role in the construction of the Akkuyu station, and also discussed Turkish-Russian relations and regional issues.

Erdogan: Today, Turkey is confidently among the countries using nuclear energy for peaceful purposes

The President of Turkey said that today Turkey is confidently one of the countries using nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, calling this event historic.

He said that the European Commission has accepted nuclear energy as one of the sources of green energy and Turkey is following this path, adding that more than 300 specialists have been trained in the field of nuclear energy in Russia.

The Turkish President emphasized that his country adheres to all the standards and recommendations of the International Atomic Energy Agency and the European Union, and said that all four power units of the Akkuyu nuclear power plant will be put into operation by 2028.

Rosatom: Today is a historic day in all Russian-Turkish relations

Alexei Likhachev, Director General of Rosatom, said that today is a historic day in the history of Russian-Turkish relations. Today Türkiye is a nuclear power, using nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.

He stressed that there were no obstacles in the way of completing the construction of the Akyuyu station, like the coronavirus epidemic, and no political circumstances prevented the completion of work.

Before that, Rosatom Director General Alexei Likhachev said that in the fall of this year it is planned to begin processing the first power unit of the station, provided that the real start-up of the nuclear power plant will take place next year.

Likhachev said: “We plan to start real operation next year and bring the reactor to a state of the minimum power level that can be controlled in order to produce electricity steadily in 2025.”

Turkish Energy Minister: Station will provide 10% of Turkey’s energy needs

Turkish Energy Minister Fatih Donmez said that the station will produce electricity for Turkey for 80 years and will provide 10% of Turkey’s energy needs, stressing that the station for Turkey is not just a nuclear power plant, but rather the beginning of a nuclear era. in Turkey.

The Turkish minister added that his country would send missions to train specialists and pointed out that the Akuyu station project is one of the best examples of long-term mutual understanding between Russia and Turkey.

Nuclear fuel was delivered to the construction site today, Thursday, and it will be placed in a special fuel storage, so from now on, the Turkish facility will become nuclear, and there will be nuclear power in Turkey.

After its completion, the station will provide electricity to 15 million people, and it is noteworthy that if the station was built 10 years ago, now Turkey could save 14 billion dollars.

About 100 Turkish companies are participating in this project, and the Akyuyu plant now employs 30,000 workers and specialists in nuclear energy, roads, houses, cafes, and hotels have been built for them.

The first concrete of Unit 1 was poured in April 2018, Unit 2 in June 2020, and Unit 3 in March 2021. The nuclear power plant was built jointly with the Russian company Rosatom.

The project will allow Turkey to join countries with civil nuclear power. The project costs $20 billion and has a capacity of 4,800 megawatts. It includes the construction of 4 reactors in the village of Akkuyu overlooking the Mediterranean Sea.

The Akkuyu nuclear power plant in Turkey occupies an important place in the relations between Ankara and Moscow in the energy sector, and this sector is a fertile field for cooperation between the two countries in light of the important stage that world markets are going through.

Source: RT