Akkuyu's first back-up diesel generator being commissioned

Friday, 21 February 2025

Each of the four units at the Akkuyu plant will have three diesel generators, which will be ready to operate within 15 seconds of being required to provide power if the mains power supply is lost.

The first diesel generator was started at idle and there will now be tests of its operation under load, with around 50 checks to take place in various operating modes. Once these tests are successfully passed it will be put into "standby" mode, where it will be ready to automatically start to provide back-up power when required.

The commissioning of diesel generators is required before the cold-hot testing phase of the reactor unit.

Andrei Zhukov, Deputy Director and Technical Director of the NPP Under Construction at Akkuyu Nuclear said: "Backup diesel power plants are one of the basic elements of nuclear power plant safety systems. These plants serve as independent power sources for the nuclear power plant in case of a main power supply failure. Together, the three diesel generators in each unit will be able to provide power to all designed systems of the unit for at least 72 hours without refuelling."

The Russian VVER-1200 reactors at Akkuyu are each designed to have three diesel generators - two for the emergency power supply and one for the normal operation system. Each plant has a capacity of 6.3 MW and are located in independent buildings. They each have a back-up start-up system which allows remote start-up from the nuclear power plant or from the back-up control centre. In total a fuel reserve for six days of backup power is stored on site.

Background
 

Akkuyu, in the southern Mersin province, is Turkey's first nuclear power plant. Rosatom is building four VVER-1200 reactors, under a so-called BOO (build-own-operate) model. According to the terms of the 2010 Intergovernmental Agreement between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Turkey, the commissioning of the first power unit of the nuclear power plant must take place within seven years from receipt of all permits for the construction of the unit.

The licence for the construction of the first unit was issued in 2018, with construction work beginning that year. Nuclear fuel was delivered to the site in April 2023. Turkey's Nuclear Regulatory Agency issued permission for the first unit to be commissioned in December, and in February it was announced that the reactor compartment had been prepared for controlled assembly of the reactor - and the generator stator had also been installed in its pre-design position.

The aim is for unit 1 to begin supplying Turkey's energy system in 2025. When the 4800 MWe plant is completed, it is expected to meet about 10% of Turkey's electricity needs, with the aim that all four units will be operational by the end of 2028.