Russia Builds and Operates Russian Nuclear Power Plant in Turkey – Akkuyu NPP Nears Start-Up
Muenster – Turkey's first nuclear power plant is nearing the start-up of its first unit. Yet contrary to what the term "Turkish nuclear power plant" suggests, the Akkuyu NPP is not owned by the Turkish state. It is owned by the Russian state corporation Rosatom, which is financing, building and also operating the nuclear power plant in Turkey.
Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant: Four Russian Reactors with 4,800 MW of Capacity
The Akkuyu nuclear power plant is being built on Turkey's Mediterranean coast in Mersin province. The project is based on an intergovernmental agreement concluded between Russia and Turkey in 2010. Four Russian VVER-1200 pressurized water reactors are being built, each with a capacity of 1,200 MW. Costs for the 4,800 MW project were originally estimated at around $20 billion. Estimates have since risen considerably. Rosatom CEO Alexey Likhachev put the cost at $23 to $24 billion in 2023, and at $24 to $25 billion in 2024. A final figure has not yet been given.
What sets the project apart is its business model. According to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Akkuyu is being realized under a Build-Own-Operate (BOO) model. The Rosatom-controlled project company Akkuyu Nuclear is financing the construction, owns the plant, and is also set to operate it afterward. The Turkish-Russian intergovernmental agreement stipulates that companies authorized by the Russian side must at no point hold less than 51 percent of the project company.
Construction of the first unit began in 2018, followed by the other units in 2020, 2021 and 2022. The plan was to bring the first unit online in 2023, the year marking the 100th anniversary of the Turkish Republic. That schedule could not be met. In June 2026, Turkey's Ministry of Energy announced that Unit 1's reactor pressure vessel had been loaded with 163 dummy fuel assemblies as a trial run ahead of later loading with actual nuclear fuel. The Turkish government's goal is to achieve first power production still in 2026.
Turkey Guarantees Offtake: Nuclear Power from Akkuyu Priced at 12.35 US Cents per Kilowatt-Hour
Turkey does not have to finance the multi-billion-dollar investment in Akkuyu itself; the refinancing of Russia's investment is secured in part through a long-term state electricity offtake agreement.
Under the Turkish-Russian intergovernmental agreement, the state-owned Turkish electricity trading company TETAS guarantees to purchase 70 percent of planned power output from units 1 and 2 for 15 years each. For units 3 and 4, the guaranteed share is 30 percent each. The contractually agreed weighted average purchase price is 12.35 US cents per kilowatt-hour. Across all four equally sized reactors, the guaranteed offtake therefore corresponds, on a statistical basis, to 50 percent of total power production.
The project company can sell the electricity not covered by the offtake guarantee on the Turkish power market. That applies to 30 percent of output from the first two reactors and 70 percent from the other two. Once each 15-year offtake period expires, the entire power output can be sold on the market. The BOO model thus combines Russian financing of Russian-owned nuclear assets with a long-term Turkish offtake guarantee for part of the power production.
Turkey Simultaneously Expanding Wind and Solar Power on a Massive Scale
Turkey's entry into nuclear energy does not mean the country is easing off on expanding renewables. Quite the opposite: at the end of July 2026, Turkey had a total installed power capacity of 126,476 MW, according to the Turkish Ministry of Energy. Solar power accounted for 21.7 percent and wind power for 12.1 percent, with more than 42,000 MW of combined wind and solar capacity installed. By 2035, the Turkish government aims to raise installed wind and solar capacity to 120,000 MW.
A clear difference emerges when it comes to the price per kilowatt-hour of electricity. According to the Turkish Ministry of Energy, contracts for eight solar projects from the YEKA GES-2025 tender round, with a combined capacity of 650 MW, were signed in early 2026. Operators are initially allowed to sell the electricity produced on the open market for 60 months. After that, the power is fed into the transmission grid for 20 years at 3.25 euro cents per kilowatt-hour. The contract models, currencies and time frames differ from the Akkuyu agreement and are therefore not directly comparable.
Even so, the gap to the average offtake price of 12.35 US cents per kilowatt-hour for the contractually guaranteed share of nuclear power production is substantial.
Decommissioning and Nuclear Waste – Final Disposal Still Unresolved
The Russian-dominated project company Akkuyu Nuclear is also taking on further nuclear obligations. According to the IAEA, the project company is responsible, among other things, for managing radioactive waste and spent fuel as well as for the plant's eventual decommissioning. Payments into corresponding funds are also planned for waste management and decommissioning.
The long-term disposal of spent fuel has not been finally resolved. Under Turkey's National Radioactive Waste Management Plan, as documented by the IAEA, the nuclear waste is initially to be stored at the plant site.
Russian ownership of the power plant therefore does not necessarily mean that the long-term nuclear waste question has also been solved for Turkey. A final disposal solution for the highly radioactive waste does not yet exist.
International Nuclear Power Business Between States – Russia Relies on Different Financing Models
The Akkuyu model represents a particular form of Russia's nuclear export strategy. In other nuclear power projects, by contrast, Rosatom does not itself act as owner. At Hungary's Paks II, for example, the state-owned Hungarian project company Paks II is to become owner and operator of the two new reactors. Russia provided a state credit line of €10 billion for planning, construction and commissioning, while Hungary is financing up to a further €2.5 billion from its own funds.
These examples illustrate the range of models: from a Russian state loan for a power plant owned by the partner country, to the Akkuyu model, in which the Russian side takes on financing, ownership and operation. Above all, the multi-billion-dollar investment sums involved and the long project timelines make the construction of large nuclear power plants a field of projects in which states and state-owned companies play the truly central role.
Source: IWR Online, 08 Sep 2026
