Taisei, Obayashi to build nuclear plant in Turkey: Report

Japanese general contractors Taisei and Obayashi will participate in the construction of a nuclear power plant project in Turkey led by the Japanese and Turkish governments, media group Nikkei reported on June 20. 

Major French construction company Bouygues and two or three Turkish contractors will partner with Taisei and Obayashi in a joint venture, Nikkei said, adding that the project would be the first overseas nuclear plant construction to include Japanese general contractors.

The plan is to build four reactors in the northern province of Sinop. 

Construction on the first reactor will start in 2017 at the earliest, with plans to bring it online in 2023. The project is expected to cost 2 trillion yen ($16.3 billion), with 400 billion yen to 500 billion yen of that tied to construction. As such, the complete project is expected to come in lower than the original tender price of $22 billion. 

Taisei will lead the joint venture, and the two Japanese contractors likely will fulfill the bulk of the duties, Nikkei reported. The venture is prepared to submit a bid, but since project decisions are made between the Japanese and Turkish governments, competing bids are not expected. The project will be overseen by a soon-to-be-established company that will include Mitsubishi Heavy as a stakeholder.

Taisei and Obayashi have helped construct several Japanese nuclear plants, but new construction ceased domestically after the 2011 Fukushima meltdown. Though the Japanese building market has been bullish thanks to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, it is expected to shrink in the long term, leading contractors to look overseas to expand their revenue bases.