Report Says Akkuyu Nuclear Plant to Cause Electricity Prices and Foreign Dependency to Increase

Producing electricity from renewable sources is increasingly becoming more widespread in the world, said a report by the Union of Chambers of Turkish Engineers and Architects (TMMOB).

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The TMMOB has released a report on the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant which is being constructed in the southern province of Mersin by Rosatom, a public corporation of Russia.

The report said that the plant will "certainly" increase Turkey's foreign dependency in electricity production as the electricity produced by the plant will be sold at prices up to 275 percent more expensive compared to the average prices in the country.

The Akkuyu plant will also cause the electricity prices to increase, the 132-page report indicated. It said that the average price for electricity in November 2018 is 5.56 cents/kWh, while the price of electricity that Turkey will buy from the plant will be 12.35 cents/kWh on average for 15 years upon the agreement with Russia.

The report said that renewable power sources, especially solar and wind energy, are increasingly becoming widespread in the world. "The countries that own NPPs are suspending the plans for constructing new NPPs or limiting the number of new NPPs, besides, they are shutting down their old NPPs while they still have licenses. Germany and the US are the leading countries in this practice," it said.

"In all the world, producing electricity with renewable sources is increasing. In many countries, plants that use fossil fuel and nuclear plants are replaced with renewable sources plants because they have a less negative impact on the environment," the report further indicated.

The construction of the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant began in April 2018, after a ceremony attended by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia. (PT/VK)