MOSCOW, April 27. /TASS/. Turkey’s Akkuyu NPP has all components to be called the safest nuclear power plant in the world, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi said.
"Well, I think it has every element to be [the safest nuclear plant on the plant], the whole process has been following the international safety standards and security guidance of the IAEA. So we are pretty confident that once it is commissioned, as I understand, before the end of this year, it is going to be a plus," he told Izvestia, answering a question about whether Akkuyu NPP could be called the safest plant in the world.
Grossi also pointed to the plant’s original design, which he said combinied "artistic features" while maintaining a powerful energy potential.
The Akkuyu NPP is Turkey’s first nuclear power plant. The project is being implemented under the intergovernmental agreement signed by Russia and Turkey in 2010. The power plant includes four Russian-designed VVER generation 3+ reactors. Each reactor’s power output will be 1,200 MWt. Once commissioned and brought to full capacity, the NPP will produce about 35 billion kWh every year. The plant is designed to provide up to 10% of Turkey’s electricity needs.
To date, the project is fully financed by the Russian side. The Akkuyu NPP is the first project in the global nuclear industry implemented on the Build-Own-Operate model. The plant will be operated by a large number of local specialists who have undergone and continue to undergo practical and theoretical training in Russia.