The Turkish Atomic Energy Authority (TAEK) granted the country's first nuclear power plant Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant's (NPP) project company - Akkuyu Nuclear - a "limited work permit" to construct the plant's second unit, Russia's State Nuclear Energy Corporation (Rosatom) announced on Friday.
Receiving the "limited work permit" is an important stage in the licensing of the Akkuyu NPP's second unit's construction, according to a statement by Rosatom, the major consortium partner for the plant.
"When obtaining the ‘limited workspermit' and the ‘main license' for the construction of unit 1, Akkuyu Nuclear's project team profoundly explored the requirements for documentation and the rules for submission of documents. And our specialists fully captured the practice and lessons learned for efficient team work when preparing and submitting documents for the ‘limited work permit' for unit 2," said Anastasia Zoteeva, chairwoman of Akkuyu Nuclear.
TAEK issued the "limited work permit" after a thorough review and assessment of the package of submitted documents by the Akkuyu Nuclear Company.
This package of documents for unit 2 consists of a Preliminary Safety Analysis Report and a Probabilistic Safety Analysis of the plant, as well as a number of other documents confirming the safety of the power unit.
As a significant milestone in the project's implementation, the permit allows for construction and installation work at the unit's facilities, namely excavation to lay the unit's foundation as well as engineering works.
Akkuyu Nuclear has to obtain a construction license to pour concrete for the foundation slab for the second unit, signifying a formal start of construction activities for unit 2.
Akkuyu is set for construction by Russia in the southern Turkish province of Mersin. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin launched construction of the project at a ceremony in the capital Ankara on April 3.
The plant, consisting of four units, each with a capacity of 1,200 megawatts, will meet about 10 percent of Turkey's electricity needs.