Geo-data specialist company Fugro said on 12 August that it had completed a complex six-month offshore site characterisation project for Turkish nuclear energy company EUAS International ICC on the Sinop peninsula where Turkey plans to build its second NPP.

Fugro said the project builds on several successful multidisciplinary investigations delivered since 2013 and the results will support feasibility studies for the country’s second NPP. The Geo-data acquisition, analysis and advice unlocked new insights into the site’s subsurface conditions to help engineers in their safe design of the nearshore structures and earthquake safety measures.

Fugro combined local knowledge with global expertise to perform a series of geological, geotechnical and geohazard tasks for site characterisation, including cone penetration testing and sampling, and continuous rock coring from 20 m to 500 m water depths, in challenging weather conditions. The advanced geotechnical tests were carried out at Fugro’s Houston laboratory, while the geoconsultancy team in Turkey performed the Geo-data integration and geohazard assessments.

Erkan Yılar, Programme Manager for EUAS International ICC, said: “Fugro has been working with us both offshore and onshore since 2013, gathering the necessary Geo-data to characterise the Sinop NPP site and assess geohazards. In this latest offshore site characterisation project, Fugro did a great job in terms of data acquisition, analysis and advice. Their experienced team, along with their cutting-edge vessels and equipment, enabled us to complete a very challenging project on time and on budget, while also meeting the nuclear industry’s demanding quality standards.”