First large-scale Akkuyu NPP equipment arrive

By Zeynep Beyza Kilic

ANKARA, Turkey

A “core catcher”, the crucial safety component of the Akkuyu Nuclear power plant, has been delivered to the construction site, the Akkuyu Nuclear Inc. said in a statement on Monday.

The core catcher, which is the first large-scale equipment of the Unit 1, will be installed under the nuclear reactor pressure vessel, is a cone-shaped tank weighing 150 tons made of high-temperature steel, according to the statement.

It had been manufactured by the Russian enterprise JSC TYAZHMASH specializing in this kind of equipment, it also added.

“The construction works at the Unit 1, for which the core catcher is intended, are performed according to the plan, the preparatory works for the catcher installation are in progress,” the Akkuyu Nuclear Inc. said.

Anastasiya Zoteeva, General Director of Akkuyu Nuclear Inc., said in the statement that the first equipment was the part of the nuclear safety.

“The safety and reliability of an NPP are laid down long before the start of its operation. The implementation of nuclear safety principles from the very first day of the project implementation, as well as the constant control over the construction works, are an essential part of the construction process,” Zoteeva said.

“This approach is applied through the entire lifetime of the plant, which is 60 years, with possible extension,” she added.

“The Akkuyu Project relies upon the experience of construction and operation of the plants with the same design type in Russia. It stipulates a combination of active and passive systems assuring NPP safety under any external conditions.”

The Akkuyu NPP, Turkey’s first power plant project, started with an intergovernmental agreement signed between Turkey and Russia on May 12, 2010.

At present, there are 450 nuclear power plants in 31 countries, while 55 plants are under construction around the world.

*Writing by Rabia Iclal Turan;