Specialists at TVEL (Rosatom’s Fuel Division) have developed a complete set of documents justifying the cost of decommissioning unit 1 at the Akkuyu NPP under construction in Türkiye. The package includes a decommissioning cost plan, a methodology for determining and calculating the amount of contributions to the reserve fund of the operating organisation (project company Akkuyu Nuclear).
The work was carried out under a contract between TVEL and Akkuyu Nuclear, which provides for the development of cost plans for the decommissioning of units 1-3, as well as unit 4 with the infrastructure facilities of the Akkuyu NPP, and the creation of the necessary methodological framework.
The documentation was developed taking into account Turkish legislation, according to which the operating organisation is obliged to contribute funds to the special reserve fund of the Ministry of Energy & Natural Resources for each kilowatt-hour of electricity sold. In addition, national legislation provides for the formation of a separate internal reserve to finance preparations for decommissioning and cover unforeseen expenses.
“This is the first such practice in the international supply of nuclear power plants and a weighty proof of the complex nature of the Russian proposal,” said Eduard Nikitin, Director of Decommissioning of Nuclear Facilities and Management of Radwaste at TVEL. “The experience gained at the Akkuyu project can be successfully replicated in the implementation of similar projects abroad.”
Thus, Russian specialists not only develop and implement engineering solutions, but also form a stable financial model that ensures long-term, controlled accumulation of funds for the safe completion of the life cycle of the power unit. The design life of the VVER-1200 power units of the Akkuyu NPP is 60 years with an option to extend it for another 20 years.
Akkuyu 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. Rosatom is constructing the reactors according to a build-own-operate model. Unit 1 is expected to begin operation in 2025. In July 2024 Akkuyu NPP reported that some 70% of the equipment and systems installed at unit 1 had already undergone commissioning.
