Bayraktar: We are close to reaching an agreement with China for the third nuclear power plant

The Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Alparslan Bayraktar, stated that in a few months they want to reach an agreement with China for the construction of a third nuclear power plant.

Bayraktar claimed negotiations could be completed “within a few months” after Chinese officials recently visited the potential site of the facility.

Bayraktar, who met journalists at yesterday’s press conference, said: “We have been in talks with a Chinese company for a long time. “This way we can fill the gaps and reach an agreement with China on the nuclear energy program soon,” he said.

If the deal is reached, China will build Turkey’s third nuclear power plant.

According to Bloomberg, Turkey sees nuclear power as an important pillar of its efforts to reduce the cost of energy imports, which last year amounted to just under $80 billion.

Bayraktar says the ultimate goal is to increase electricity generation capacity from nuclear power to 20 gigawatts, about four times what the Akkuyu power station can produce when it is fully operational in a few years.

To achieve this goal, Turkey will likely need an additional capacity of 5 GW of small modular reactors known as SMRs, the minister said.