Tag: nuclear power

  • Turkey turns to coal and nuclear power

    Turkey turns to coal and nuclear power

    by Daniel Dombey

    Much of Europe may be moving towards cleaner power but in Turkey it is a different story.

    coal power

    EUAS, the country’s state-owned electricity company, was due on Monday to sign a memorandum of understanding with two South Korean groups on a $2bn coal fired power plant. It is also moving ahead with plans for two nuclear plants.

    The government says that by 2023 it wants to reduce the percentage of electricity generated by gas from 50 per cent to 30 per cent.

    That contrasts with a new study showing that 71 per cent of new power generating capacity in the European Union last year came from renewable energy sources.

    For economic and diplomatic reasons, Ankara is keen to cut its dependence on gas imports from Russia and Iran and to boost its – hitherto insufficient – domestic energy production. About three quarters of the country’s energy comes from abroad.

    Turkey has had price disputes with both Moscow and Tehran, its two biggest gas suppliers. Such considerations are particularly important when you have a current account deficit of $77bn and an energy import bill of more than $40bn.

    Having broken off one contract last year with Russia, by far Turkey’s biggest gas supplier, Ankara recently announced it was taking Iran to arbitration over the prices it charges.

    Announcing the plan to reduce the share of gas in Turkey’s mix to 30 per cent, Taner Yildiz, energy minister, said at the weekend that the government would provide incentives for coal-based projects and impose limits on natural gas projects.

    The memorandum of understanding – which Yonhap News agency said would be between EUAS and SK E&C and Korea South-East Power – fits into that plan and was timed to coincide with President Lee Myung-bak’s current trip to Turkey.

    (Lee has other energy imperatives of his own during his trip to the region; he will later visit Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates as discussions intensify about alternatives to Iranian oil.)

    Meanwhile, Turkey’s efforts to reduce its energy dependence also continue, with plans to build two nuclear power plants. One will be built by a Russian consortium on the Mediterranean coast. Lee agreed to revive talks on South Korea involvement in the second.

    via Turkey turns to coal and nuclear power | beyondbrics | News and views on emerging markets from the Financial Times – FT.com.

  • Turkey: Turks Discover They Are a (Sort of) Nuclear Power

    Turkey: Turks Discover They Are a (Sort of) Nuclear Power

    December 1, 2011 – 4:08pm, by Yigal Schleifer
    • The Turko-file
    • Nuclear Security
    • Turkish Foreign Policy

    The homepage of the (newly, and poorly, redesigned) Hurriyet Daily News features a fairly provocative headline today: “Turkey given possession of nuclear warheads, report says.” So has Turkey just become the Middle East’s newest nuclear power? The real story is a lot less sensational, yet also much more interesting, than that.

    kongre raporu incirlik atom bombalarini dogruladi
    Turkey, as a member of NATO, has in fact hosted tactical nuclear weapons since the 1950’s. Today, NATO keeps an estimated stockpile of 60-70 nuclear bombs at the Incirlik air base in southern Turkey, down from 90 in 2001. Most of these (some 50) are designed to be delivered by United States aircraft (which are not housed at Incirlik and would have to be flown in and armed for any mission). The rest are earmarked for Turkish fighter jets, although it appears that Turkish pilots are currently not being trained for nuclear missions. (Hurriyet’s sloppy story follows up on a more carefully written one that appeared the day before in the Vatan newspaper, written by Washington correspondent Ilhan Tanir.)
    From an interesting report published at the end of last year by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, which looked at the status of the the US’s tactical nuclear weapons in Europe, especially in light of NATO’s newly-developed “Strategic Concept,” which places less importance on these weapons:

    There are conflicting reports about the status of the Turkish nuclear mission. Gen. Ergin Celasin, former commander (until 2001) of the Turkish Air Force, is on record stating that Turkey’s role in the NATO nuclear strike mission ended in the 1990s with the withdrawal of weapons from the national Turkish bases (Kibaroglu, 2010). In contrast, according to Pentagon sources, Turkey currently uses its F-16s to execute the nuclear mission. Moreover, until Turkey acquires a sufficient number of nuclear-capable JSFs over the 15 years, its F-16s are scheduled to receive a “stop-gap” upgrade to make them capable of carrying the new B61-12 bomb that will replace the B61-3/4 beginning in 2017.
    The confusion about Turkey’s status may have to do with the aircraft’s degree of nuclear readiness, which has changed over time, ranging from full alert in the 1980s, to withdrawal from national bases in the 1990s, to today’s “pick up the weapons at Incirlik if needed” posture. During these phases, the aircraft status changed from nuclear-capable, certified, and loaded, to nuclear-capable and certified, to nuclear-capable. Today, the Turkish aircraft are nuclear-capable (according to US sources) but neither loaded nor certified. This, combined with the absence of a US wing at Incirlik AB, underscores the special status of the Turkish posture.

    The subject of the nukes at Incirlik is not widely discussed in Turkey and most Turks are probably not aware of the weapons’ existence on their soil (take a look at this other report from the Bulletin for more on the specific case of Turkey’s nukes). It appears, though, that Ankara enjoys being under NATO’s nuclear umbrella (even if it’s a mostly closed one). For example, while Germany has pushed for the removal of the NATO nukes stored at one of its airbases, there has been little talk in Ankara about getting rid of the nuclear bombs at Incirlik. “Turkey has stressed that any decision to removal of NATO’s forward deployed nuclear weapons must be an alliance-wide decision and it does not seem that anyone in Ankara is excited by the idea of their removal,” says Aaron Stein, a a nonproliferation expert based in Turkey.

    “Any talk of removing these weapons is premature and should be viewed within the greater context of US-Russian nuclear arms negotiations. The Russians still maintain thousands of tactical nuclear weapons as a hedge against NATO’s growing conventional military superiority. The US could remove these weapons and still fulfill its nuclear obligations by using other delivery vehicles, but it chooses not to do so. In other word, their deployment is not critical for the US or NATO’s nuclear deterrent,” Stein says.
    Still, the presence of nuclear weapons on Turkish soil and under Turkish supervision does pose some interesting questions for Turkey, particularly regarding Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s frequent calls in recent years, as part of his stated desire to see the Middle East as a nuclear-free region, for Israel’s undeclared nuclear arsenal to also be examined by those who criticize Iran’s nuclear program. Mustafa Kibaroglu, a professor at Istanbul’s Okan University and one of Turkey’s leading nonproliferation experts, suggests that getting rid of the bombs under its watch could allow Ankara to make an important statement in terms of ridding the region of nuclear weapons.
    “Logic suggests that Turkey should drawdown the U.S. nuclear weapons that are deployed on its territory. However, Turkish governments have so far been cool to this idea and have taken no concrete steps that would suggest otherwise. The U.S. nuclear weapons will most likely be sent back sooner than most people might expect under the current circumstances,” he writes in an email.
    “It is, however, in Turkey’s responsibility to take a decision in this respect before developments in other political and military forums dictate such a policy. By taking a decision to drawdown these weapons, Turkey may set a very valuable and meaningful precedent for the countries in its neighborhood. Turkey’s profile, which is increasing in the Middle Eastern public domain as well as among the political and military authorities may help enhance its image in the region that was not, however, a very positive one until recently stemming from history.”
  • Taksim hosts ‘delightful’ anti-nuclear protest

    Taksim hosts ‘delightful’ anti-nuclear protest

    anti nuke protest

    A group of 30 locals on Monday staged an anti-nuclear protest in İstanbul’s Taksim Square.

    An anti-nuclear platform that organized an anti-nuclear protest to coincide with a similar rally taking place in Japan gave Turkish delight to demonstrators and bystanders at İstanbul’s Taksim Square on Monday.

    A group of 30 people held signs that read “Good-bye to nuclear plants” and “No to nuclear plants” while marching.

    Protester Erhan Karaçay said it is upsetting to see Turkey taking part in nuclear projects, which caused an unexpected situation that even an advanced nation like Japan could not handle.

    Karaçay also demanded that the Turkish government cancel an agreement signed with Russia concerning the future Akkuyu nuclear plant, which is expected start operations by 2019.

    Around 50,000 protestors rallied in Tokyo on Monday in what was the biggest rally the country has seen in years to show their opposition to nuclear power. It has been six months since the Fukushima disaster and the people gathered to protest the poorly handled incident as well as to demand that the number of reactors be reduced.

    via Taksim hosts ‘delightful’ anti-nuclear protest.

  • Tokyo Electric May Give Technical Support to Turkey Nuclear Bid

    Tokyo Electric May Give Technical Support to Turkey Nuclear Bid

    Tokyo Electric Power Co. will consider providing technical support if asked by a Japanese group including Toshiba Corp. (6502) that’s seeking orders to build four nuclear power reactors for Turkey’s government.

    “We haven’t make any decision on participating,” said Yoshinori Mori, a Tepco spokesman. “We’ll consider whether we can offer technical support if we get such a request.”

    Tokyo Electric will probably be replaced by another utility, the Sankei newspaper reported earlier today, citing a Turkish government official it didn’t name. Talks between Turkey and the group have been suspended since the March 11 earthquake, Sankei said.

    Tokyo Electric is reviewing its overseas businesses as it plans a restructuring, Mori said. The Turkish project isn’t included in the review as the utility hasn’t made a decision to participate, he said.

    To contact the reporter on this story: Mariko Yasu in Tokyo at myasu@bloomberg.net

    To contact the editor responsible for this story: Jim McDonald at jmcdonald8@bloomberg.net

    via Tokyo Electric May Give Technical Support to Turkey Nuclear Bid – Bloomberg.

  • MP launches bid to halt nuclear power station building

    MP launches bid to halt nuclear power station building

    Martin Horwood

    West MPMinisters should halt plans for new nuclear power stations in the UK following the disaster in Japan, a West MP said yesterday.

    Cheltenham Liberal Democrat Martin Horwood has tabled a Commons motion that has attracted support from MPs of all parties.

    Energy Secretary Chris Huhne has already ordered a report from the Chief Nuclear Inspector on the implications for the UK of events at Fukushima power station.

    The Daily Press has reported how South West anti-nuclear campaigners want him to shelve plans for new reactors in the UK, including those proposed for Hinkley Point in Somerset and Oldbury in South Gloucestershire.

    Mr Horwood’s Early Day Motion, which applauds the courage and expertise of those working to make the Japanese power stations safe, welcomes Mr Huhne’s decision.

    But it adds: “Events in Fukushima underline the extreme dangers inherent in nuclear power, the relative resilience of a completely safe, decentralised and renewable energy supply and the inability of even the highest design and safety standards to protect us from unforeseen events.”

    The MPs are calling on Mr Huhne “to suspend Government’s plans for a new nuclear power programme”.

    Mr Horwood said: “Events in Fukushima are reminding everyone how dangerous nuclear energy can be.

    “As if the Japanese people weren’t suffering enough, their electricity supply has been disrupted, hundreds of thousands evacuated and anxiety spreading throughout the civilian population.

    “Unforeseen events do happen – even in this country – and Fukushima demonstrates how dependence on nuclear power can add to the crisis.”

    So far the EDM has been signed by MPs from five other parties, including high profile Tory environment campaigner Zac Goldsmith and Caroline Lucas, the sole Green MP.

    Meanwhile the House of Lords Science and Technology Committee has launched an inquiry into UK research and development capabilities.

    Committee chairman Lord Krebs said: “Although this inquiry was conceived before the recent tragic events in Japan, this underlines the importance of ensuring that our research and development capabilities meet out future nuclear energy needs not just for generation capacity, but also for ensuring safety.”

    www.thisissomerset.co.uk, March 18, 2011