The Turkish government has recently focussed on the nuclear power industry, which is a new sector in the country's economy, in an attempt to reduce the country's dependence on foreign suppliers of energy resources, primarily natural gas. Considering growing fuel shortages, this has become a top priority issue.
In April 2006, Turkey's Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources and the Turkish Atomic Energy Authority (TAEK) published a Concept of the National Nuclear Energy Policy. The document stipulates the commissioning of at least three nuclear reactors with a total capacity of up to 5,000 MW by 2020. Electricity will be produced by water reactors using local uranium reserves (9,000 metric tons). According to tentative estimates, nuclear power plants should meet 5% to 7% of the country's electricity requirements in the future. Experts estimate their construction costs at about US$7-8 billion.
In November 2007, the Turkish parliament passed a law on construction and operation of nuclear power plants and the sale of electricity produced by them. The law provides for various schemes to finance NPPs construction, including on a public-private basis. The Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources will supervise the implementation of the project.
On March 24, 2008, the Turkish government announced a tender to build and operate the first nuclear power plant (according to the build-own-operate investment model). The state guarantees to provide a land plot for construction on the Mediterranean coast (construction near Sinop on the Black Sea coast, which was initially considered the priority project, will be launched later). A company (or a consortium) winning the tender will be the owner of the nuclear power plant upon completion of its construction and entry into service. It will receive a guaranteed sales contract with the Turkish state-controlled Electricity Trading Company (TETAS) with fixed electricity prices for a long term.
The winner will be a company (or a consortium) that will offer lowest electricity tariffs. The NPPs construction costs and electricity production costs will not be taken into account since these are investment and commercial risks of the project participants. Under the terms of the tender, the supplier will ensure project financing and the construction and operation of nuclear power plants.
Twelve companies, including major American, Canadian and South-Korean firms, bought the tender documents. Russian companies Atomstroyexport and Inter RAO UES took part in the tender in consortium with the Ciner Group, a major Turkish industrial holding.
Of all the participants in the tendering process, only the Russian-Turkish consortium has submitted a concrete proposal. It includes the building of four 1,200 MW power units and subsequent electricity sales at a fixed price until 2030, and at a market price later. The first casting of concrete into power unit 1 of the NPP is slated for June 2011. The first unit is to be commissioned in July 2016, and the next ones every other year. Construction costs under the consortium's proposal will amount to US$21 billion. The payback on investment in NPPs is to be completed by the end of 2030.
On September 24, 2008, the tender commission held a meeting as a result of which the consortium's proposals were accepted. At present, the commission is examining its offer on electricity prices.