Turkey’s first nuclear power plant

[paul90]

I know that people often criticise the quality of construction here (e.g Lapta Coastal Path).
Let's hope that Turkish and Russian contracters do a good job in Mersin, after all it is only 65km from us!
There again, didn't Russia build Chernobyl?

"A ground-breaking ceremony for Turkey’s first nuclear power plant, Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant was be held in the southern province of Mersin on Tuesday.
The power plant will be built by the Russian State Nuclear Energy Agency Rosatom and will comprise 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.
According to preliminary evaluations, 35-40% of the plant’s construction could be undertaken by Turkish companies potentially providing added value to the economy by about $6-$8 billion.
The Akkuyu power plant will produce 35 billion kilowatts of electricity at full capacity, which will cover more than 10% of Turkey’s electricity needs, or equivalent to the electricity demand of Istanbul.
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.
During the peak period of the plant’s construction, about 10,000 people will be employed, while approximately 3,500 people will be provided with job opportunities in the operation phase.
Moreover, 248 Turkish students were educated in Russia to work at the plant. Thirty-five of these students graduated last month after 6.5 years of education.
An intergovernmental agreement to construct Akkuyu was signed between Russia and Turkey in 2010.
Russia’s Energy Minister Alexander Novak told Anadolu Agency one day before the ground-breaking ceremony: “Our company was waiting for a construction license and now we have received information that permission will be given”.
The grant comes a day before a visit by Russian President Vladimir Putin to Ankara, where Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will also attend a ceremony to officially launch Akkuyu’s first unit."

[Groucho]

Allah, Allah.... The sun is shining but they can not see it....

[Keithcaley]

I think that the figures for the amount of electricity generated lost something in translation, the article quoted: -

"The Akkuyu power plant will produce 35 billion kilowatts of electricity at full capacity"

- it will actually be capable of producing 4.8 million kilowatts of electricity, or a theoretical maximum of

35 to 42 billion KiloWatt Hours per annum.

Anyway, quite a lot

I am unsure of the advisability of building it on the coast in a known Earthquake Zone (remember Fukushima in Japan?), and I can't say that the memory of Chernobyl fills me with confidence regarding Russia's Nuclear expertise either...

[frontalman]

We all gotta go sometime.

[kayc]

Turkey would be wise to consider a Thorium nuclear power facility. Much safer.

https://www.arte.tv/en/videos/050775-00 ... _1=1063773

[rocking]

When this was discussed 20 years ago, I said the day they open that up, I’ll be off???? Well it gives me a few more years here before opens. It’s on a fault line and Turkish builders???? May God help us.

[jofra]

...We all gotta GLOW sometime....

[frontalman]

When this was discussed 20 years ago, I said the day they open that up, I’ll be off???? Well it gives me a few more years here before opens. It’s on a fault line and Turkish builders???? May God help us.

Bit of an overnuclearreaction

[kibsolar1999]

Kayc (and others),
Thorium reactors are dangerous as well and it is very very easy to use - breed weapon-grade materials as Uran 233- 235, Protactinium, plutonium and so on , either with the reactor itself or externally.
A nuclear weapon for everybody.. yeah...
The promotion of thorium, or melted salt, reactors is.... greenwashing.
İt is a new initiative of the atom-lobby to receive more and again money for the “investigation of an alternative”.
Rubbish. Fission reaction should be damned.
Maybe fusion is the future. But when?
Here a critical voice about thorium reactors.
http://www.jonathonporritt.com/sites/de ... 3.7.12.pdf
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathon_Porritt
here an article in german (“ thorium reactors--- old lies, newly packed” ) , incl the complaint that wikipedia is “infected” from the atom lobby and keeps deleting critical voices (hey, mr davidson!)
http://www.bund-rvso.de/thorium-reaktor ... klein.html
btw, it would take 20 – 40 years to a commercial thorium plant.
Apart of that, Turkey will buy most of the energy produced from the new Akkuyu nuclear power plant for 12,35 US dollar cent per kWh.
A solar PV plant and Wind energy can produce a kWh much cheaper.
So why the risks are taken?, incl the risk to employ “just graduated students” without any experience?

[erol]

Apart of that, Turkey will buy most of the energy produced from the new Akkuyu nuclear power plant for 12,35 US dollar cent per kWh.

Hi kibsolar1999. If you can could you expand on this a bit please ? Is this the 'deal' where by the private company builds the plant at its own cost and the Turkish government agrees to buy the output at this rate ? For how long and or much ? Does the 'deal' include future decommissioning or will these be born by the government and not the private company ? What do you mean by 'most' ? If you can provide any more info on this (sources in English and / or your own words) I for one would appreciate this. 12,35 dollar cents per KWh does seem high to me. Thanks.

[kibsolar1999]

Hi Erol,
well, the basic info about Akkuyu, 4 x 1200 MW = 4800 MW for approx (and today!!) 21 billion euros, and the 12,35 US cent (=10,5 eurocents) i took from… Wikipedia, and the first post also says it.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akkuyu_Nu ... ower_Plant
At planned Hinckley point C, 3200MW for approx 22 billion euros ( so a bit more expensive as the Russians in Turkey… why?...well, maybe because akkuyu is only “safe” till 6.5 magnitude on Richter scale and maybe “other safety amendments ” ???) , the UK agreed for a price of GBP 92.5 for the MWh (= at the moment , say, 10 eurocent/kWh) .
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hinkley_P ... er_station
in this article it is also mentioned that “in france” they manufacture the kWh for approx 4,5 eurocents/kWh and that the UK gov “cross-subsidise the UK military's nuclear-related activity” with this price.
So, the russians , it seems, make a better deal in Turkey as other investors in France and even in the UK!
How comes?

[Keithcaley]

It does seem odd...

12.35 US cents = approx 54.4 Kuruş at today's exchange rate.

The current (Friday 6th April) 'Next Day Spot Price' for electricity in Turkey is around 22 Kuruş - I can't see people being happy when their electricity bills 'more than double'!

[kibsolar1999]

it does seem odd..
the spot price in the 'UK is the same as in Turkey.. approx 5 eurocent per kWh.
so, also in the UK "I can't see people being happy when their electricity bills 'more than double'"

[kibsolar1999]

grid feed tariff for PV in Germany:
roofs
up to 10 kWp: 12,2 eurocent
up to 40 kWp: 11,87
up to 100kWp 10,61
open space
up to 100kWp: 8,44
open space from 750 kWp: tender only, i have seen prices around 6 cent

[Sallywebstersnipples]

Kibsolar: Is it possible to have an off grid system in TRNC and if so what would be the price for a 2 or 3 bed house?
I guess you would need a fair amount of battery storage? Are home owners obligated to be connected to kibtek.
Excuse my ignorance, it just seems that TRNC would be the perfect place for such systems.

[erol]

A bit more info on the economics of the 'deal' on this project, from link from the wiki article kibrisolar linked to before (thanks)

The IGA contains a requirement for the state-owned power sales company TETAS to purchase a fixed amount of electricity (70% of electricity from units 1-2 and 30% of electricity from units 3-4 respectively) for 15 years from the date of commercial launch of each of the 4 units at a weighted average price of US cents 12.35 per kWh. The planned electricity output for the four units is at least 33.1 billion kWh per year.

source - http://www.neimagazine.com/features/fea ... u-project/

Still can not find any info yet on who will be responsible / bear the cost of decommissioning the plant at the end of it's 60 year projected lifespan.

[kibsolar1999]

It gets a bit off topic, but i just posted the some prices for, eg, PV, to show that especially nuclear power stations are not necessary any more.
In case of a hazard at Akkuyu and north-east wind, we have 3-4 hrs to leave the island.
The low spot prices have basically three reasons.
1. The real costs for fossil and nuclear power NEVER have been properly priced in, eg, IF nuclear power stations would be properly insured for a worst case scenario, and even then decommissioning and disposal of waste for 1 million years is not included, a kWh should be around 1 euro,.
2. Many of the fossil and nuclear power stations are “written off tax”. That’s why suppliers want extension of permissions for eg, old and older nuclear power stations.
3. Renewables lower, at the moment, the spot prices.
No wonder that nearly all “classic” power suppliers shares are down and downer.
So, we all have to accept that prices in the future will not go down, especially when a “Renewable infrastructure” has to be set up. But at least our environment will be cleaner and-or our lifes safer.
For off grid systems I will open a new topic soon in the RE section.

Erol,
if you cant find anything.. then usually the taxpayer needs to pay for it.
and you also can not find anything about where the radioactive rubbish will be stored...

[erol]

thanks for you input kibsolar. I certainly find them interesting and appreciate them.

Complex and multi faceted issues not just for individual nations but all of us it seems to me.