Akkuyu Plant: Putin Says Turkish Firms Ready to Buy Stake in $25B Project
Putin said Turkish companies are ready to take a stake in the Akkuyu nuclear plant, which Rosatom owns, but no buyer, stake size or price has been named, and the first reactor is still not running.
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Putin's $25 billion valuation and the 49 percent ceiling on a partner's stake, as reported by TRT World citing Interfax.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday, Oct. 28, that Turkish investors are ready to acquire a stake in the Akkuyu nuclear power plant in southern Türkiye, a project he valued at about $25 billion. TRT World, citing the Interfax news agency, carried his remarks.
"We are building, operating and owning the plant," Putin said, adding that some Turkish companies are ready to buy in and that Moscow would welcome that. He did not name the companies, the size of the stake or a price. The plant is developed by Russia's state nuclear corporation Rosatom and financed by Russia.
Rosatom is the plant's sole owner today and can sell up to a 49 percent stake to a partner, according to TRT World. That ceiling matters for the buyer: a minority holder would share the construction bill and the output of four reactors but would not control the project.
Where the Akkuyu talks stand
The idea is not new. Rosatom director-general Alexey Likhachev said in early May that the company had started "substantive discussions" with a number of Turkish companies on joining the share capital, NucNet reported on May 4. TRT World adds that Likhachev said earlier in October that the negotiations were making progress. Putin's comment adds a head-of-state voice to those talks, but no agreement has been announced.
Rosatom targets the first chain reaction at Akkuyu before the end of 2026, years after the original 2023 commissioning target, TRT World reports.
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Russia and Türkiye signed the construction agreement in 2010. Akkuyu will have four Russian-designed VVER-1200 reactors, and construction began in 2018. The original commissioning target was 2023, and the schedule has slipped several times, TRT World said.
What it means for Turkish power supply
Akkuyu is Türkiye's first nuclear power station and has not yet started operating. Rosatom now expects the first reactor to reach its first self-sustaining chain reaction before the end of this year, the milestone that comes before grid connection. A Turkish stake would give local companies a share in a plant that Russia alone has financed so far.
For readers tracking firm, carbon-free supply, the open question is who pays and how much power Turkish buyers would receive. Putin gave no figure for either. Rosatom's other overseas builds are also in the news: Rosatom delivered the first fuel shipment for Bangladesh's Rooppur Unit 2, and Hungary is weighing a replacement for Rosatom on its Paks expansion, Reuters reported.
What is not confirmed yet
No Turkish company has confirmed an offer, and neither Rosatom nor the Turkish government has said what share, price or financing terms are on the table. The $25 billion figure is Putin's own valuation as relayed by Interfax. The first-criticality date is a Rosatom target, not an event that has happened.
