Turkey plans to bring its first nuclear reactor at the Akkuyu nuclear plant, on the country’s southern coast opposite Cyprus, into operation within the coming weeks, Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar has announced.
Presenting Turkey’s new energy strategy, titled “Milli Enerji 2040”, Bayraktar said construction was continuing on all four reactors at the nuclear power station.
Ankara aims to meet 11% of the country’s energy needs through nuclear power by 2040. According to the minister, this would save $6 billion a year in natural gas imports.
Turkey targets 20,000 MW of nuclear capacity
Bayraktar said planned nuclear power plants in Sinop and Eastern Thrace were at the decision-making stage.
Turkey aims to reach a total nuclear power capacity of 20,000 megawatts by 2050.
The minister presented the “Milli Enerji 2040” programme ahead of the UN Climate Conference (COP31), which will be held in Antalya.
He said Turkey was seeking to achieve full energy independence by 2049.
$190 billion investment in energy sector
Bayraktar said Turkey currently depends on foreign sources for 68% of its energy needs, with annual import costs reaching $90 billion.
The government aims to reduce this dependence to below 50% during the 2030s.
He also announced plans for investments of $190 billion in the energy sector, with the aim of increasing the share of renewable sources in installed electricity generation capacity from 63% to 71% by 2040.
Also read: EU urges Turkey to normalise relations with Cyprus in latest report
For more videos and updates, check out our YouTube channel
