Concreting of the foundation slab of the reactor building for unit 4 of the Akkuyu NPP under construction in Turkiye has been completed, according to project company Akkuyu Nukleer (part of Rosatom). This paves the way for construction of the walls of the reactor shaft, where a melt localisation device (melt trap) will be installed.
For the foundation, a special high quality concrete mixture was used. The composition includes stone materials of natural origin - crushed stone and sand, which are mined directly at the Akkuyu NPP construction site. The parameters of the concrete mixture are monitored throughout the entire technological process of concrete mix production. Concrete characteristics are carefully checked such as temperature, slump and density. Each batch of concrete mixture undergoes a series of laboratory control operations at the site.
To ensure maximum strength of the slab, 3,500 tonnes of reinforcement and 17,500 cubic metres of concrete mixture were laid in the foundation – enough to create a site for 10 football fields 1 metre high. Akkuyu Nukleer Director General Anastasia Zoteeva said completing concreting of the foundation slab was a key event for unit 4, adding that all the work was carried out in accordance with Intrnational Atomic Energy Agency safety standards and international and Turkish national requirements.
Akkuyu, Turkiye's first NPP, will eventually host four Russian-designed VVER-1200 reactors. The pouring of first concrete for unit 1 took place in April 2018, for unit 2 in June 2020, for unit 3 in March 2021, and for unit 4 in July 2022. Completion of unit 1 is expected in the third quarter of 2023. Rosatom is constructing the reactors according to a build-own-operate model. To date, the project is fully funded by the Russian side. However, Rosatom has the right to sell a share of up to 49% in the project to other investors.
Earlier in August, Turkiye’s Minister of Energy & Natural Resources Alparslan Bayraktar announced that unit 1 is expected to begin operation in October 2024.
Image courtesy of Rosatom
