Remarkable 'Akkuyu' move from Russia: Evaluating a sale

Russia's state-controlled nuclear energy company, Rosatom, is planning to sell a portion of its shares in the $25 billion Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant it is building in Turkey.

Anton Dedusenko, Chairman of the Board of Akkuyu Nuclear JSC, stated at the Nuclear Power Plants Summit held in Istanbul that negotiations are ongoing with both domestic and foreign investors.

According to a Bloomberg report, Dedusenko stated that investor interest has increased as the plant's first unit nears the start of electricity production. Previously, a consortium consisting of Cengiz Holding A.Ş., Kolin İnşaat Turizm Sanayi ve Ticaret A.Ş., and Kalyon İnşaat Sanayi ve Ticaret A.Ş. had been considered to purchase these shares, but these companies decided to withdraw from the partnership in 2018.

Stating that the first unit of the facility, which will be Turkey's first nuclear power plant, has a capacity of 4.8 gigawatts and is in the testing phase, Dedusenko said it is expected to begin electricity production in 2026. Dedusenko said, "I am confident that the necessary systems to supply electricity to the grid will be ready by the end of the year."

US sanctions imposed on Russia due to the war in Ukraine have led to problems and delays in the project's financing. This situation has led Turkey and Russia to seek alternative ways to finance the construction. Dedusenko said, "There are many ways to transfer money here. We can make payments in Russian rubles or Turkish Lira. The real problem, unfortunately, is the currencies in which transactions are currently blocked."