Energy Minister Fatih Dönmez announced on Wednesday that Turkey would build its third nuclear power plant, to be located in the northwestern part of the country, in partnership with Chinese firms, the Diken news website reported.
“Considering its proximity to industrial zones that have a huge electricity requirement, we are planning to build the third nuclear plant in Thrace, and we will proceed with Chinese partnership,” Dönmez said.
Turkey has partnered with Russian companies for a nuclear power plant in Akkuyu, Mersin province, and with a French-Japanese consortium for a plant in Sinop.
Environmentalists have strongly criticized Turkey’s nuclear power plant plans due to their potential hazards; however, the Turkish government believes generating nuclear energy will reduce the country’s energy dependency on neighbors such as Russia, Iran and Iraqi Kurdistan.
Finance and Treasury Minister Berat Albayrak visited China in July, after which he announced that Chinese financial companies would provide $3.6 billion loans to Turkey.
