Preparations for the construction of Unit 4 of the Akkuyu nuclear power plant are underway, according to the project company developing the plant, Akkuyu Nuclear JSC on Thursday.
The building works follow the issuance of a Limited Work Permit (LWP) by Turkey’s Nuclear Regulatory Authority on June 30 this year.
Turkey’s first nuclear power plant will become the world’s largest nuclear construction center, where four power units will be built simultaneously, according to Akkuyu Nuclear JSC First Deputy CEO and Director of the Akkuyu NPP under construction, Sergei Butckikh.
He said this simultaneous construction of the four power units is a unique case in the history of the global nuclear industry.
Excavation for the construction of the reactor building, the turbine hall, the auxiliary reactor building and other main facilities of Unit 4 are being carried out in an area of 655 square meters.
Butckikh said he expects to receive the go-ahead this year to allow full-scale construction of Unit 4, which he expects will start early next year.
The construction of the concrete blinding of the reactor and the foundation slabs for the turbine buildings will begin followed by reinforcement of the slabs, he said.
The depth of the excavation at its lowest point will be almost 12.5 meters. In total, the workers will have to move almost 600,000 cubic meters of soil. The pit construction works consist of the loosening and excavation of rocky soil, as well as the development of drainage water disposal. Currently, over 20 construction machines are working on-site comprising excavators, dump trucks and drilling rigs.
The pit development will require soil strengthening involving high-pressure injections of a water-cement mixture into the soil massif. This will form pile massifs to provide the required bearing capacity for the safety and stability of the buildings and structures in accordance with international standards.
By Murat Temizer
Anadolu Agency
Source: Anadolu Agency