Türkiye nuclear plant delayed by withheld Siemens parts – China to supply instead

The opening of Türkiye's first nuclear plant has been delayed after Germany's Siemens Energy withheld key parts – prompting Russia's Rosatom, the builder and owner, to buy them in China, the Turkish energy minister said on Wednesday.

Siemens's non-delivery will delay launching the Akkuya power plant's first reactor by a few months, Minister Alparslan Bayraktar told state-run Anadolu agency. The decision likely stems from Western sanctions over Russia's war in Ukraine, he added.

Though Türkiye had initially planned to start up Akkuyu's first reactor in 2023, delays have pushed that back to next year, with the remaining reactors to come online by the end of 2028.

A Siemens Energy spokesperson confirmed that some parts were not delivered to Türkiye due to German export regulations.

Bayraktar said that Rosatom, Russia's state nuclear energy company, has already struck deals with Chinese companies to produce equivalent parts, though he provided no company names.

"There are alternatives. Rosatom already ordered alternative parts from Chinese (firms), and they will come from China," Bayraktar said, adding that Türkiye could consider fining Siemens Energy over the delay, even though it has worked with the German company for years.

"This attitude will make us question their position in future projects," he added.

$20bn project

Rosatom has been building the Akkuyu plant in the Mediterranean province of Mersin under an agreement with Ankara dating back to 2010. The $20 billion, 4,800 megawatt project includes four reactors, and would bring Türkiye into the small club of nations with civil nuclear energy.

Siemens Energy gave no official reason for withholding the parts, Bayraktar said. It said Türkiye understands that it could be related to sanctions on Moscow. Germany's sanctions and trade policies appear to be incongruous, he said.

The Siemens Energy spokesperson said: "Some parts were delivered a long time ago, but not for a good year now, due to export/customs licenses that have not yet been issued. We must of course comply with the export regulations."

Efforts by both Rosatom and Türkiye to secure the delivery of the equipment failed and "Rosatom therefore ordered the equipment from Chinese manufacturers to keep up with project deadlines" Rosatom's subsidiary Akkuyu Nukleer said.

Türkiye, maintaining close ties with both Moscow and Kyiv, opposes the European and U.S. sanctions on Russia, which were imposed after Russia's 2022 military attack on Ukraine.

Intergovernmental agreement

Last year, nuclear fuel was loaded into the first power unit. The plant is ultimately expected to produce around 10 percent of local electricity production.

Türkiye and Russia signed the intergovernmental agreement for Akkuyu in 2010. Construction began in 2013 and picked up speed in 2018. The agreement limits local ownership of the plant at 49 percent, requires the first reactor to be commissioned in 2025 and includes a power purchase agreement at a guaranteed price.

In July, President Tayyip Erdogan said Germany was delaying some parts required for the Akkuyu plant at customs.

"This has seriously bothered us. I reminded German Chancellor Olaf Scholz of that in our bilateral meeting," Erdogan said.

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