TR Nuclear Energy Program

Bogeyman 

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Turkey In Talks With US to Buy American Nuclear Reactors​

  • US State Department official comments on nuclear talks
  • Turkey can buy up to 35 small modular reactors from US



Turkey’s government and private companies are in talks with the US for purchases of small nuclear reactors, as the country looks to wean itself off coal.

“There is a serious interest in nuclear as a way to replace coal-fired power plants,” Justin Friedman, senior advisor for commercial competitiveness in nuclear energy at the US State Department, said in an interview with Bloomberg on Tuesday in Ankara.

There is room to purchase as many as 35 small modular reactors, known as SMRs, Friedman said, citing Turkish aspirations for 20 gigawatts of electricity generation capacity from nuclear by 2050.


“Now the question is how do we work together government-to-government to open the door to the business-to-business cooperation,” he said.

US manufacturers of SMRs include NuScale Power Corp. and the Bill Gates-backed TerraPower LLC. SMRs typically generate a hundred megawatts or slightly more — making them roughly a tenth the size of conventional reactors — and can be built in series, like components in a factory, rather than as the usual bespoke projects.


Investment on this scale would cost billions of dollars. It’s unclear how the financing would work should the talks result in a commercial deal.

Turkey’s energy ministry declined to comment.

The talks with the US come as Russian state company Rosatom nears completion of the Akkuyu nuclear power plant in southern Turkey. The government is also negotiating a second power plant with Rosatom that may be built in Sinop on the Black Sea coast.

Turkey has 68 coal-fired power stations, which met about a third of its electricity needs last year, according to the energy ministry. The country aims to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2053.
 

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Turkiye In Talks With US to Buy American Nuclear Reactors​

  • US State Department official comments on nuclear talks
  • Turkiye can buy up to 35 small modular reactors from US



Turkiye’s government and private companies are in talks with the US for purchases of small nuclear reactors, as the country looks to wean itself off coal.

“There is a serious interest in nuclear as a way to replace coal-fired power plants,” Justin Friedman, senior advisor for commercial competitiveness in nuclear energy at the US State Department, said in an interview with Bloomberg on Tuesday in Ankara.

There is room to purchase as many as 35 small modular reactors, known as SMRs, Friedman said, citing Turkish aspirations for 20 gigawatts of electricity generation capacity from nuclear by 2050.


“Now the question is how do we work together government-to-government to open the door to the business-to-business cooperation,” he said.

US manufacturers of SMRs include NuScale Power Corp. and the Bill Gates-backed TerraPower LLC. SMRs typically generate a hundred megawatts or slightly more — making them roughly a tenth the size of conventional reactors — and can be built in series, like components in a factory, rather than as the usual bespoke projects.


Investment on this scale would cost billions of dollars. It’s unclear how the financing would work should the talks result in a commercial deal.

Turkiye’s energy ministry declined to comment.

The talks with the US come as Russian state company Rosatom nears completion of the Akkuyu nuclear power plant in southern Turkiye. The government is also negotiating a second power plant with Rosatom that may be built in Sinop on the Black Sea coast.

Turkiye has 68 coal-fired power stations, which met about a third of its electricity needs last year, according to the energy ministry. The country aims to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2053.

Couldn't Turkey develop SMRs by itself. Probably not as efficient as the US ones but still important learnings would be made.
 

Quasar

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Couldn't Turkiye develop SMRs by itself. Probably not as efficient as the US ones but still important learnings would be made.
-Most probably such a deal with US is very hard to realize with current relations... or with Germany, France, Japan, South Korea.... eventhough energy dependence is Turkey's achilles tendon

-Logic dictates that easier said than done but eventually one way or other we have to enter nuclear energy field on our own or with highy unlikly help from Russia or China

-Our balistic missile program is maturing under the cover of Space program. Same will be true for the nuclear enegy/ weapon programs.
 
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Zafer

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These small reactors still contribute a small amount of power rather than a large one. Türkiye needs to finish work on the thorium reactors and see what can be done with it. If successful thorium reactors can supply the bulk of Türkiye's energy needs. If not we then look into developing our Uranium reactors.
 

what

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I believe the SMR might be a better way to realize our energy needs, because currently its hard to find someone to finance a 20bln €+ regular sized power plant. Otherwise we would have made progress with the other 2 planned plants, but have made little progress in the last decade.
 

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Turkiye In Talks With US to Buy American Nuclear Reactors​

  • US State Department official comments on nuclear talks
  • Turkiye can buy up to 35 small modular reactors from US



Turkiye’s government and private companies are in talks with the US for purchases of small nuclear reactors, as the country looks to wean itself off coal.

“There is a serious interest in nuclear as a way to replace coal-fired power plants,” Justin Friedman, senior advisor for commercial competitiveness in nuclear energy at the US State Department, said in an interview with Bloomberg on Tuesday in Ankara.

There is room to purchase as many as 35 small modular reactors, known as SMRs, Friedman said, citing Turkish aspirations for 20 gigawatts of electricity generation capacity from nuclear by 2050.


“Now the question is how do we work together government-to-government to open the door to the business-to-business cooperation,” he said.

US manufacturers of SMRs include NuScale Power Corp. and the Bill Gates-backed TerraPower LLC. SMRs typically generate a hundred megawatts or slightly more — making them roughly a tenth the size of conventional reactors — and can be built in series, like components in a factory, rather than as the usual bespoke projects.


Investment on this scale would cost billions of dollars. It’s unclear how the financing would work should the talks result in a commercial deal.

Turkiye’s energy ministry declined to comment.

The talks with the US come as Russian state company Rosatom nears completion of the Akkuyu nuclear power plant in southern Turkiye. The government is also negotiating a second power plant with Rosatom that may be built in Sinop on the Black Sea coast.

Turkiye has 68 coal-fired power stations, which met about a third of its electricity needs last year, according to the energy ministry. The country aims to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2053.
Reverse engineer them SMR's!
 

Chocopie

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Reverse engineer them SMR's!
Easier said than done. You need to have access to a existing reactor to reverse engineer.

There are only 2 operational reactors in Russia’s Far East and China afaik. Numerous SMR designs by different nuclear players fight for shares in this promising future nuclear reactor market.
 

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Turkiye In Talks With US to Buy American Nuclear Reactors​

  • US State Department official comments on nuclear talks
  • Turkiye can buy up to 35 small modular reactors from US



Turkiye’s government and private companies are in talks with the US for purchases of small nuclear reactors, as the country looks to wean itself off coal.

“There is a serious interest in nuclear as a way to replace coal-fired power plants,” Justin Friedman, senior advisor for commercial competitiveness in nuclear energy at the US State Department, said in an interview with Bloomberg on Tuesday in Ankara.

There is room to purchase as many as 35 small modular reactors, known as SMRs, Friedman said, citing Turkish aspirations for 20 gigawatts of electricity generation capacity from nuclear by 2050.


“Now the question is how do we work together government-to-government to open the door to the business-to-business cooperation,” he said.

US manufacturers of SMRs include NuScale Power Corp. and the Bill Gates-backed TerraPower LLC. SMRs typically generate a hundred megawatts or slightly more — making them roughly a tenth the size of conventional reactors — and can be built in series, like components in a factory, rather than as the usual bespoke projects.


Investment on this scale would cost billions of dollars. It’s unclear how the financing would work should the talks result in a commercial deal.

Turkiye’s energy ministry declined to comment.

The talks with the US come as Russian state company Rosatom nears completion of the Akkuyu nuclear power plant in southern Turkiye. The government is also negotiating a second power plant with Rosatom that may be built in Sinop on the Black Sea coast.

Turkiye has 68 coal-fired power stations, which met about a third of its electricity needs last year, according to the energy ministry. The country aims to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2053.
These are nice and very useful when coupled with renewable energy. But I think it is still not fully matured technology. That is why it is not widely available yet, that is why this is very surprising news.
 

Afif

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I believe the SMR might be a better way to realize our energy needs, because currently its hard to find someone to finance a 20bln €+ regular sized power plant. Otherwise we would have made progress with the other 2 planned plants, but have made little progress in the last decade.
State can't fund it?
 

Yasar_TR

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Apparently we are in negotiations with S Korea regarding a 30 billion dollar nuclear power plant in Sinop.
1671667379612.jpeg
 

Chocopie

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Both sides are still in negotiations.
Turkey already signed a contract with Mitsubishi in 2013 but the Japanese got out later because of pricing differences.

For Sinop it would be 4 Korean APR-1400 megawatt reactors. Hm, many potential atomic tenders going on latety …

 

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It sucks how in Australia we are not getting nuclear power.

Good on Turkiye for doing its part in trying to get cheap electricity.
 

Chocopie

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And Australia is an Uranium exporter. Enhanced nuclear expertise would be ideal. The AUKUS SSN submarines contain sealed reactors with highly enriched uranium and UK/US doesn‘t seem to share technology but only delivering for a hefty amount of $$$.
 

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Hi folks, lets keep this thread strictly about Turkish nuclear energy program.

All posts about nuclear weapons etc have been moved here:


Please continue that conversation over there, thanks.
 

Stuka

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About Turkeys Nuclear Energy Future

Current 3 Locations that have been determined

1687376593141.png


The Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant
is under construction at Akkuyu, Mersin.
It is expected to generate around 10% of the country's electricity when completed
Rosatom will build, own, and operate a power plant at Akkuyu comprising four 1,200 MWe VVER1200 units.

The Sinop Nuclear Power Plant
is a proposed nuclear plant in Turkey located at Sinop on the Black Sea.
Talks for the plant in Sinop first began with Japan before they switched to Rosatom.
Negotiations with Rosatom started in 2022. If constructed, it will be the country's second nuclear power plant after the projected Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant.
Meanwhile, South Korean energy giant Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) presented a proposal regarding the construction of four reactors capable of providing 1,400 megawatts (MW) of electricity in the Sinop NPP

The Igneada Nuclear Power Plant
In 2015 it was announced that İğneada had been selected as the third site.
Technology would have come from US based firm Westinghouse Electric Company in the form of two AP1000 and two CAP1400,
which was projected to be built after 2023 under the management of Turkish engineers

These Sites have been known but
Head of Nuclear Infrastructure Development Department, Salih Sarı, announced that they are conducting field research for the installation of a fourth nuclear power plant in Turkey.

Maybe more to the east ? or Central ?



An Event in Istanbul for Nuclear Energy starts today.

The 5th Nuclear Power Plants Fair and the 9th Nuclear Power Plants Summit (NPPES), organized by the Ankara Chamber of Industry (ASO) and the Nuclear Industry Association (NSD) with the support of the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources,
will be heldon June 21, 2023 at Istanbul Lütfi Kırdar International Convention and Exhibition Center.

1687377784208.png


During the Fair and Summit, which will last for two days, business opportunities and small modular reactors will be on the agenda in the second and third nuclear power plants planned to be established in Turkey, as well as the Akkuyu NPP project. In NPPES, where there will be an intense international participation this year, developments in the nuclear energy sector, which has grown with its contribution to the low carbon economy model, will also be discussed.


China:

China State Energy Investment Company - SPIC Turkey Project Head Xiaohang Wang stated that they are determined to cooperate with Turkish partners

"With the support of the Chinese and Turkish governments, we have been collaborating extensively with relevant Turkish companies in the energy field over the past decade. SPIC is actively committed to collaborating with Turkish partners for advanced passive third-generation nuclear power technology when building nuclear power plants in China. "

1687377488448.png



Korea:

Collaboration opportunities will be developed for South Korea, which has significant experience in the field of nuclear energy, and Turkish industrialists trying to become a supplier in this field.

Ankara Chamber of Industry Nuclear Industry Cluster ( ASO NÜKSAK ), which continues to work for the Turkish industrialists to be more involved in the field of nuclear technology , signed the goodwill agreement with the Korean Nuclear Association
According to the agreement; Collaboration between ASO NÜKSAK and KNA on nuclear energy projects and opportunities, including small modular reactors (SMRs)

1687377948403.png





Outlook:

Speaking at the opening of the summit, Salih Sarı, Head of Nuclear Infrastructure Development Department of the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources, General Directorate of Nuclear Energy and International Projects, stated that negotiations are continuing for the establishment of a second nuclear power plant in Sinop and a third nuclear power plant in Thrace apart from Mersin Akkuyu NPP in Turkey. . Our field research for the nuclear power plant project continues.” Sarı also stated that they are in close contact with US, British and French companies regarding SMRs.

“WE NEED MORE THAN 100 BILLION DOLLARS IN 30 YEARS”

Sarı said, “At the point of reaching carbon neutral targets, we aim to increase the share of nuclear energy to 11.1 percent in 2035 and to 29.3 percent in 2053.

For this, we need to build more than 20 GW of nuclear capacity. In this context, we need a nuclear investment of more than 100 billion dollars in the next 30 years.
In this context, we plan to implement three more large-scale nuclear power plant projects with at least 12 units, in addition to Akkuyu with 4 units, and to use SMR technologies as well.

SMRs can be financed more easily, offer field flexibility, non-electrical use, factory manufacturability, We think that with its modular structure and being open to mass production, it can appeal to a wider range of investors and it will offer high added value business opportunities for our domestic industry. Three criteria for establishing SMR design in our country are important for us. These; licensability, commercializability and localizability. We continue to work on the development of a business model and legal framework for the establishment of SMR investments by the private sector and with the highest possible domestic contribution, and our site selection studies for SMRs.”

1687378163403.png


 

Heartbang

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About Turkeys Nuclear Energy Future

Current 3 Locations that have been determined

View attachment 58633

The Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant
is under construction at Akkuyu, Mersin.
It is expected to generate around 10% of the country's electricity when completed
Rosatom will build, own, and operate a power plant at Akkuyu comprising four 1,200 MWe VVER1200 units.

The Sinop Nuclear Power Plant
is a proposed nuclear plant in Turkey located at Sinop on the Black Sea.
Talks for the plant in Sinop first began with Japan before they switched to Rosatom.
Negotiations with Rosatom started in 2022. If constructed, it will be the country's second nuclear power plant after the projected Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant.
Meanwhile, South Korean energy giant Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) presented a proposal regarding the construction of four reactors capable of providing 1,400 megawatts (MW) of electricity in the Sinop NPP

The Igneada Nuclear Power Plant
In 2015 it was announced that İğneada had been selected as the third site.
Technology would have come from US based firm Westinghouse Electric Company in the form of two AP1000 and two CAP1400,
which was projected to be built after 2023 under the management of Turkish engineers

These Sites have been known but
Head of Nuclear Infrastructure Development Department, Salih Sarı, announced that they are conducting field research for the installation of a fourth nuclear power plant in Turkey.

Maybe more to the east ? or Central ?



An Event in Istanbul for Nuclear Energy starts today.

The 5th Nuclear Power Plants Fair and the 9th Nuclear Power Plants Summit (NPPES), organized by the Ankara Chamber of Industry (ASO) and the Nuclear Industry Association (NSD) with the support of the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources,
will be heldon June 21, 2023 at Istanbul Lütfi Kırdar International Convention and Exhibition Center.

View attachment 58636

During the Fair and Summit, which will last for two days, business opportunities and small modular reactors will be on the agenda in the second and third nuclear power plants planned to be established in Turkey, as well as the Akkuyu NPP project. In NPPES, where there will be an intense international participation this year, developments in the nuclear energy sector, which has grown with its contribution to the low carbon economy model, will also be discussed.


China:

China State Energy Investment Company - SPIC Turkey Project Head Xiaohang Wang stated that they are determined to cooperate with Turkish partners

"With the support of the Chinese and Turkish governments, we have been collaborating extensively with relevant Turkish companies in the energy field over the past decade. SPIC is actively committed to collaborating with Turkish partners for advanced passive third-generation nuclear power technology when building nuclear power plants in China. "

View attachment 58635


Korea:

Collaboration opportunities will be developed for South Korea, which has significant experience in the field of nuclear energy, and Turkish industrialists trying to become a supplier in this field.

Ankara Chamber of Industry Nuclear Industry Cluster ( ASO NÜKSAK ), which continues to work for the Turkish industrialists to be more involved in the field of nuclear technology , signed the goodwill agreement with the Korean Nuclear Association
According to the agreement; Collaboration between ASO NÜKSAK and KNA on nuclear energy projects and opportunities, including small modular reactors (SMRs)

View attachment 58637




Outlook:

Speaking at the opening of the summit, Salih Sarı, Head of Nuclear Infrastructure Development Department of the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources, General Directorate of Nuclear Energy and International Projects, stated that negotiations are continuing for the establishment of a second nuclear power plant in Sinop and a third nuclear power plant in Thrace apart from Mersin Akkuyu NPP in Turkey. . Our field research for the nuclear power plant project continues.” Sarı also stated that they are in close contact with US, British and French companies regarding SMRs.

“WE NEED MORE THAN 100 BILLION DOLLARS IN 30 YEARS”

Sarı said, “At the point of reaching carbon neutral targets, we aim to increase the share of nuclear energy to 11.1 percent in 2035 and to 29.3 percent in 2053.

For this, we need to build more than 20 GW of nuclear capacity. In this context, we need a nuclear investment of more than 100 billion dollars in the next 30 years.
In this context, we plan to implement three more large-scale nuclear power plant projects with at least 12 units, in addition to Akkuyu with 4 units, and to use SMR technologies as well.

SMRs can be financed more easily, offer field flexibility, non-electrical use, factory manufacturability, We think that with its modular structure and being open to mass production, it can appeal to a wider range of investors and it will offer high added value business opportunities for our domestic industry. Three criteria for establishing SMR design in our country are important for us. These; licensability, commercializability and localizability. We continue to work on the development of a business model and legal framework for the establishment of SMR investments by the private sector and with the highest possible domestic contribution, and our site selection studies for SMRs.”

View attachment 58638

If we won't be able to master the nuclear fuel cycle on the merit of these projects, all we managed to do is to leave one vice(hydrocarbons) and replace with another.
Also, the nuclear power industry is starting to put a heavy focus on fast(breeder) reactors. it is imperative for us to get on top of that, one way or another.
 

dBSPL

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Turkiye is in talks with South Korea and Russia for the second nuclear power plant and with China for the third.

Sarı, Head of Department at the General Directorate of Nuclear Energy, reported that Turkiye is in talks with Russia and South Korea for the second nuclear power plant to be built in Sinop and with China for the third nuclear power plant to be built in the Trakya Region (Tekirdağ).

The 5th Nuclear Power Plants Fair and the 9th Nuclear Power Plants Summit started in Istanbul with the participation of many nuclear energy companies from around the world.

Speaking at the opening session of the fair, Sarı stated that the necessary surveys have been completed at the Sinop site, where the second nuclear power plant is planned to be built, and said, "We are currently in talks with South Korea and the Russian Federation for this site."

Giving information about the work on the third nuclear power plant to be built in the Thrace region, Sarı said, "We are also in talks with the Chinese government for the installation of a third power plant in the Thrace region."

"In addition, we are in close contact with US, British and French companies for SMRs (small modular reactors). In addition, our site research for a fourth nuclear power plant continues." He added.

(The rest of the news is about the developments related to Akkuyu NPP, those interested can click on the link.)


To summarize, following the Akkuyu NPP, concrete steps will soon be taken in the construction of the another four-reactor NPP, Sinop. The tender is currently close to Korea.

While the French are also interested in the third plant, I think the speculation of only China's name may be related to the details of operation and industrial participation. Another thing to keep in mind is that since 2011, China has finally reached the licensing stage for thorium based reactors. My wish is that while Turkiye has such a potential on this, it should be utilized in possible cooperation with China.

Another issue is that for the first time, the 4th power plant was mentioned concretely and the site identification work was mentioned. As far as I understand, the 4th power plant study is being evaluated separately from the SMR interest. In other words, apart from a total of 4 plants with 4 reactors, various small SMR plants are being considered, and the companies that come to the forefront here are the British, the US and the French. All this represents a total industrial investment size of 100 billion dollars.
 

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#Funfact we were already working on SMR with Rolls Royce for years and now RR's CEO is Turkish but still no news about it. The news that karabasan shared means that work was unsuccessful. We shouldn't trust the UK for engine too. I wish the best of luck to TRMotor and TEI
 

DBdev

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Why did we sent all these students to Russia if they are still not able to design even a basic Turkish reactor. People are making reactors on tiny companies in America. We should have bought these small cheap American companies or even better just hire their top people. Instead we are going to pay 100+ billion dollars like suckers and we are still no closer to being a nuclear super power. Genius.
 

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