The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) application file prepared for the Sinop Nuclear Power Plant, the second power plant of its kind in Turkey, has been submitted to the Environment and Urban Planning Ministry.

According to data provided by Energy and Natural Resources Ministry authorities, the application file, the first phase of the EIA report obtainment process, has been prepared in line with the format cited in the EIA regulation. The nuclear power plant will be built in a non-forest area in İnceburun, Sinop.

After the convenience of the EIA application file is approved by the Environment and Urban Planning Ministry, it will be sent to the members of the Inspection and Assessment Commission and will be offered to the public.

After the people's participation meeting is held, the EIA report's special format will be prepared by the Environment and Urban Planning Ministry in line with the views and suggestions of the members of the commission and the opinions and suggestions from the people, and the EIA report will comply with this format.

The EIA report to be prepared as a result of the studies to be carried out will be evaluated by the Inspection and Assessment Commission and submitted to the Environment and Urban Planning Ministry for approval. If the report is approved by the ministry, it will be confirmed that the environmental measures in the project are sufficient.

As part of the EIA report, which is a commitment for investors, all the effects of the project during the construction and operation periods will be monitored by the ministry and the sanctions stipulated in the legislation will be applied in case of any contradiction. All activities to be carried out under the project will be conducted rigorously within the scope of the worldwide principles and standards on nuclear safety.

In order to launch construction activities under the Sinop Nuclear Power Plant project, location and construction licenses must be obtained from the Turkey Atomic Energy Agency. The suitability of the selected project location will be decided during the location license phase and the beginning of construction activities will be decided at the end of the construction license phase.

The EIA process includes studies to determine the positive and negative environmental effects of the projects planned to be actualized, to prevent or minimize the negative effects of the measures to be taken in order to avoid harming the environment, to identify and assess the selected location and technology alternatives and to monitor and control the implementation of the project. Before the scope and the specific format of the EIA report is determined, a people's participation meeting will be held to inform the public about the project and to take their opinions and suggestions on the project.

Turkey's second nuclear power plant will be built by a French-Japanese consortium in Sinop, near the Black Sea.

As stipulated by the agreement, Turkey's Electricity Generation Company (EÜAŞ) will hold a 49 percent stake in the plant while Japan's MHI and France's Engie will hold a share of 51 percent. The project is estimated to cost more than $16 billion, according to Japanese sources.

The Sinop Nuclear Power Plant will have a 4,480-megawatt capacity of electricity generation with four reactors, each with 1,120-megawatt capacity.