Turkish, Korean firms sign cooperation agreement

The MoU was one of several agreements, including in the field of energy, signed at the Presidential Palace in Ankara during a state visit to Turkey by President Lee Jae-Myung on 24 November. In a joint statement following the meeting, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and President Lee said "the two sides emphasised their support for advancing general cooperation in the field of nuclear energy, noting its potential to further strengthen the strategic relationship between the two countries".

Türkiye Nükleer Enerji AŞ (TUNAS) CEO Necati Yamaç and Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) CEO Dong-Cheol Kim signed the MoU on nuclear cooperation in the presence of the two presidents. The MoU aims to "facilitate the mutual sharing of technical data, information, experience, and know-how between Turkey and South Korea, as well as joint projects", Turkey's Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources said.

"With this agreement, we aim to carry out joint work in many areas ranging from the development of nuclear power plant projects, technology and know-how sharing, site evaluation, project financing and human resources development," Turkey's Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said in a post on X. "I hope this agreement, which will crown our long-standing friendship with a strategic partnership in nuclear energy, will be beneficial for our countries."

TUNAS - a subsidiary of the Public Economic Enterprise EÜAŞ under the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources, established in 2022 to carry out the construction, operation, maintenance, and repair of nuclear power plants in Turkey - said: "We believe that this agreement, which will transform the deep-rooted friendship between Turkey and South Korea into a strong strategic partnership in the field of nuclear energy, will make significant contributions to our country's energy supply security."

"In line with our energy supply security, reducing foreign dependency, and achieving carbon neutrality, we aim to commission 12 nuclear reactors by 2050," Bayraktar said in a post on X on 25 November. "In this context, the memorandum of understanding on Nuclear Energy Cooperation signed between Türkiye Nükleer Enerji AŞ and KEPCO offers the opportunity for a strategic partnership with South Korea in nuclear energy. Today, we hosted KEPCO CEO Kim Dong-Cheol and his delegation at our Ministry, where we discussed the technical details of the joint efforts to be carried out within the framework of the signed memorandum of understanding."

The 4,800 MWe Akkuyu plant, in the southern Mersin province, is Turkey's first nuclear power plant. Russia's Rosatom is building four VVER-1200 reactors, under a so-called BOO (build-own-operate) model. Construction of the units began between 2018 and 2023. When the 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.

In March last year, Bayraktar was reported to have said that Turkey was talking to Russia and South Korea about Turkey's planned second nuclear power plant, at Sinop, and was also in talks with China about plans for a third plant, in the Thrace region in the country's northwest. In January 2023, KEPCO submitted a preliminary proposal to Turkey for the construction of four APR-1400 reactors at an undisclosed site in the northern part of the country.

Turkey is also developing plans for small modular reactors, with the aim of adding 5 GWe of capacity by 2050 - which would mean a total of at least 16 individual SMRs.