Türkiye has confirmed its target of 20 gigawatts of nuclear capacity by 2050, covering both conventional reactors and small modular reactors. Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar restated the goal at the Verona Eurasian Economic Forum in Istanbul, where energy, investment and financial integration were the central themes.
The first building block is the Akkuyu plant on the Mediterranean coast, built with Russia’s Rosatom. Bayraktar said work to bring the first reactor into service is continuing and that start-up is expected in the coming months. The plant will have four units totalling 4.8 GW and, once fully operational, will cover around 10% of Turkish electricity demand. For Ankara, it is the entry ticket to the group of countries with civil nuclear power.
Beyond Akkuyu, the plan identifies two further sites: the Thrace region and Sinop, on the Black Sea. For these projects Türkiye has opened talks with South Korea, China, Russia and the United States. The government says it intends to choose the most competitive offer. The interim milestone is set at 7.2 GW by 2035. Bayraktar has previously spoken of at least eight additional reactors beyond Akkuyu and 5 GW from SMRs.
Behind the numbers lies a question of dependence. Türkiye imports almost 70% of its energy needs, and reducing that share is both an economic and a national security priority. Renewables account for more than 62% of installed electricity capacity, with wind and solar above 43 GW. The minister sees nuclear as the stable source needed to support demand growing by at least 4% a year.
SMRs have a specific role in the strategy. According to Bayraktar, they will increase the stability and flexibility of the system, and domestic industry is already moving: drone maker Baykar is working on a 40 MW unit. A new nuclear law is expected to open the sector to private players.
If Akkuyu connects to the grid on the stated timeline, Türkiye will have its first concrete reference case to show suppliers competing for Sinop and Thrace. Those choices will also determine how much technology, and how many engineers, remain in the country.
