Is Russia selling its stake in the $25 billion Akkuyu nuclear power plant?

Anton Dedusenko, chairman of the board of directors of Rosatom's subsidiary responsible for the Akkuyu plant, said in an interview with Bloomberg on the sidelines of the Nuclear Power Plants Fair and Summit in Istanbul that talks with Turkish and foreign investors were ongoing.

"As we get closer to the first power generation unit, investors are starting to come," Dedusenko said.

A previous attempt to sell shares failed in 2018 when a consortium of Turkish companies (Cengiz Holding AŞ, Kolin İnşaat Turizm Sanayi ve Ticaret AŞ and Kalyon İnşaat Sanayi ve Ticaret AŞ) withdrew on the grounds that they could not agree on commercial terms.

Dedusenko said that the first unit of the 4.8 gigawatt facility, which will be Türkiye's first nuclear power plant, is currently in the testing phase and is expected to start providing energy in 2026.

"I am confident that by the end of the year the necessary systems will be ready to supply electricity to the grid," Dedusenko added.

The project has been plagued by delays and financing problems due to foreign banks' fear of being targeted by US sanctions.

This is forcing Turkey and Russia to seek alternative ways to pay for the construction, including gas swaps.

"There are many ways to send money here. We can send Russian rubles, Turkish lira," Dedusenko said.