Russia’s Rosatom to sue Germany’s Siemens over Akkuyu Nuclear Plant in Türkiye

Alexey Likhachev, the CEO of Russia’s state-owned nuclear corporation Rosatom, announced plans to sue Germany-based Siemens for failing to deliver prepaid equipment for the first unit of the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) in Türkiye.

According to Russia’s Sputnik news agency, Likhachev told Rossiya 24 in an interview on Saturday that Siemens refused to supply equipment that had already been manufactured and paid for. Likhachev stated, “There will obviously be a court process. The prepaid equipment has not been delivered. This has caused us additional costs, as we had to purchase the equipment elsewhere and adjust installation timelines.”

Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak had previously disclosed in October last year that Siemens Energy breached its contractual obligations to supply equipment for Akkuyu’s first unit. The plant, slated to launch its first unit in 2025, will eventually consist of four power units and is expected to meet 10% of Türkiye’s electricity needs.

‘No reversal to Siemens for Akkuyu Nuclear Project’

During a briefing with economic journalists on Sep. 12, 2024, Türkiye’s Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Alparslan Bayraktar, explained that Rosatom had ordered and paid for the equipment from Siemens in 2020.

He noted that Siemens manufactured the equipment and stored it in their warehouse but later cited the lack of export approval from the German government as a reason for not delivering it, using the war that began in 2022 as justification. Bayraktar emphasized that the order was placed prior to the conflict, arguing that any sanctions should not apply retroactively.

“Despite this, Siemens delayed delivery for 1.5 years. Given the risk of project delays, Rosatom eventually abandoned Siemens and transferred the order to a Chinese supplier. Production began in China, and the equipment has already been delivered and installed,” Bayraktar stated.

Bayraktar further emphasized that there would be no reversal to Siemens for this project, as the replacement process is now complete.

On the other hand, Siemens Energy had responded to Minister Bayraktar about the delay, pointing to export controls imposed by the German government.

“We have complied with export rules, but for nearly a year, we have been unable to deliver certain components for the Akkuyu project because of a lack of export and customs clearance,” a Siemens spokesperson told DW Turkish, on Sep. 14, 2024.