ANKARA, September 17. /TASS/. Turkey expects that the construction of the first reactor of the Akkuyu nuclear power plant will be completed by May 2023, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday.

"The construction of the first unit of the Akkuyu NPP, which involves 3,000 Russian and 10,000 Turkish engineers, will be completed by May 2023. We see this as a very important symbol," he stressed during his speech in Mersin, where the first Turkish nuclear power plant was being built.

For Ankara, it is important to launch the first reactor exactly in 2023, when the republic is to celebrate its 100th anniversary.

During his trip to Mersin, Erdogan visited the construction site of the Akkuyu NPP. He noted that the construction "is going smoothly," and thanks to the efforts of workers and engineers, "the plant is being built quickly."

The construction of Turkey's first nuclear power plant is taking place based of an intergovernmental agreement signed between Russia and Turkey in May 2010.

Akkuyu Nukleer is the operator of the construction. This company was established especially for this project, and it is fully owned by the Russian nuclear corporation Rosatom (over 99%)

The Akkuyu power plant will consist of four power units with a capacity of 1200 MW each. After completion of construction, the station will generate about 35 bln kWh per year.

The construction of the first unit of the Akkuyu NPP began in April 2018, the second in June 2020. Upon completion of construction, the NPP with an installed capacity of 4,800 MW will generate about 35 bln kWh per year.