Russia’s Atommash, the Volgodonsk branch of AEM-Technologies (part of Rosatom’s mechanical engineering division Atomenergomash), said on 1 September that it had begun shipping steam generators for unit 2 of the Akkuyu NPP under construction in Turkey. Four steam generators, each weighing 355 tons, will travel 3000 km to the construction site. “The first of these four steam generators was built eight months ahead of the original schedule. The timing of key production operations in their manufacture was halved,” said Igor Kotov, General Director of AEM-Technologies. “This was facilitated by the powerful and intensive development of the company that is now taking place. We have significantly strengthened the production base, introduced digital technologies, continue to improve efficiency and develop personnel.”
The delivery of products from Atommash to the customer begins with delivery by road to the port at the Tsimlyansk reservoir. Next, the steam generators will be loaded onto a barge using a gantry crane with a lifting capacity of 650 tons and sent to Turkey by water. The vessel will travel from Volgodonsk along the Don Riverl then through the Sea of Azov, through the Kerch Strait to the Black Sea. It will then travel through the Bosphorus Strait, the Sea of Marmara and the Dardanelles Strait to the Aegean and Mediterranean Seas and finally to the Akkuyu NPP construction site.
Rosatom is building four VVER-1200 reactors at Akkuyu, under a build-own-operate model. Construction of the first unit began in 2018, with start-up planned for 2023. The 4800 MWe plant when completed is expected to meet about 10% of Turkey's electricity needs.
