Turkey's energy minister denied a recent report in Japanese media that the country had selected Areva and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to build a 5,000 megawatt nuclear plant at Sinop.
An unnamed Chinese company remains in contention, Taner Yildiz said in a television interview, although Korea Electric Power Co. has dropped out on account of financing issues. He also said the bidding process would end soon, the Hurriyet Daily News reported Thursday.
If a deal is reached, Sinop would become the second nuclear power plant in the country. Russia's Rosatom reached an agreement to build, own and operate the country's first four reactors at Akkuyu in 2010, with construction slated to begin in 2015. Turkey has also made preparations at Sinop on the Black Sea, where plans call for a second large complex valued at $22 billion to $25 billion, according to the World Nuclear Association.