News

05.05.2023

PRESSURIZER FOR AKKUYU NPP UNIT NO. 2 MANUFACTURED AND SHIPPED IN RUSSIA

May 05, 2023, Volgodonsk, Russia. – Manufacturing of a pressurizer for Akkuyu NPP Power Unit No. 2 has been completed in Russia. The device is one of the main equipment items of the reactor hall.

The pressurizer is designed for generating and maintaining pressure in various operational modes in the primary circuit of the reactor, and is also engaged in system flushing onto the open reactor, i.e. flushing of installed pipelines of the safety systems and design operation systems, which are connected to the reactor. The product is a thick-wall vessel made of stainless steel: its wall thickness is 165 mm, its weight is more than 180 tons, and its inner volume is 79 m3.

The pressurizer housing comprises 4 cylindrical shells and 2 elliptical bottoms. A cladding metal layer which acts as corrosion protection lining is preliminary applied to the product's parts. In the course of manufacturing, the lower and upper parts of the structure's half-housings are assembled separately, followed by welding of shells and bottoms. After that, the product is subjected to 10-hour thermal treatment at up to 650 ^oC.

"We continue an active and fruitful cooperation with our Russian colleagues. We expect the pressurizer to be delivered to the NPP Construction Site in the near future. Then, we will start another important stage at the Power Unit No. 2, namely installation of the device into the design position using the Open Top technology, i.e. through the open top of the reactor building," commented Sergei Butckikh, First Deputy Chief Executive Officer of AKKUYU NUCLEAR JSC — Director of the NPP under Construction, on the completion of pressurizer manufacturing.

The structure will be delivered to Türkiye by a sea route which is about 3000-km long. The pressurizer installation is scheduled for this autumn.

For reference:

Akkuyu NPP is the first-ever nuclear power plant in the Republic of Turkey. The Akkuyu NPP project includes four power units equipped with Generation 3+ WWER reactors of Russian design. The capacity of each NPP power unit will be 1200 MW.  Russian Rosatom State Corporation owns 100% of the shares in the project and may sell up to 49% to one investor or several companies on the basis of the Inter-Governmental Agreement.

Akkuyu NPP is the first project in the global nuclear industry being implemented according to the Build-Own-Operate model.

According to the terms and conditions of the Inter-Governmental Agreement between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Turkey, the NPP's first power unit is supposed to be commissioned within 7 years after obtaining all construction authorizations. Given that the construction license for the Unit No. 1 was obtained in 2018, the deadline is 2025. At the same time, the project stakeholders are making their best efforts to ensure the readiness for start-up and adjustment works on the Unit No. 1 in 2023, a jubilee year for the Republic of Turkey.