USTDA Funds SMR Feasibility Study for Turkish Refiner TÜPRAŞ
Agreement Overview
The US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) has entered into a technical assistance agreement with Turkish oil and gas refiner TÜPRAŞ to carry out a structured, approximately one-year study examining US small modular reactor (SMR) technologies. The study will assess technical maturity, licensing status, safety and security frameworks, fuel supply chain requirements, economic performance, and potential industrial applications of candidate SMR designs.
The evaluation will also measure technologies against environmental sustainability criteria, covering resource efficiency, waste management, and water consumption. Its ultimate output will be a roadmap guiding TÜPRAŞ's assessment of whether and how SMRs could be integrated into its operations as the company works toward a carbon-neutrality goal by 2050.
Supply Chain and Fuel Cycle Scope
For nuclear supply-chain professionals, the explicit inclusion of fuel supply chain requirements in the study's scope is notable. The work is to be carried out by US companies, consistent with USTDA's mandate to fund technical activities that accelerate infrastructure development in emerging markets while creating export opportunities for US goods and services.
- Technical maturity and licensing status of US SMR designs
- Safety, security, and regulatory framework assessment
- Fuel supply chain requirements
- Economic performance and industrial application potential
- Environmental sustainability criteria including waste management and water use
Complementary TÜNAŞ Agreement
USTDA noted that the TÜPRAŞ agreement complements a separate arrangement signed in September with TÜNAŞ, the state-owned company established to advance Turkey's nuclear development. Under that agreement, USTDA is funding technical assistance to develop the regulatory, institutional, and financial roadmap required for Turkish private-sector companies to deploy SMR technology. Together, the two agreements address both the commercial demand side — through an industrial end-user — and the enabling policy and regulatory environment.
Turkey's Broader Nuclear Ambitions
Turkey's energy minister announced last November a target to deploy 5 GW of SMR capacity by 2050, in addition to 12 larger reactors. The government has indicated it expects private-sector investment and development to play a central role in meeting these targets.
Turkey's first nuclear power plant is currently under construction at Akkuyu in the southern Mersin province. The facility comprises four VVER-1200 reactors being built by Rosatom under a build-own-operate model. The SMR programme represents a distinct, parallel track oriented toward US technology and private-sector participation, broadening Turkey's nuclear supply-chain relationships beyond the existing Rosatom project.
