Turkey will build three nuclear power plants by 2023, the 100th anniversary of independence, Turkish Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Taner Yildiz said in an interview with Aksham paper, RIA Novosti reports.

He said that the power plants will be built at Mersin Province on Akkuyu platform, with Russian support. Another power plant will be built at the Black Sea Province of Sinop. Realization of the third project is negotiated with Japanese companies TEPCO and Toshiba.

Yildiz added that there will be no changes on projects with Russia. The power plant in Sinop will be built with Japanese support. A spot for the third plant has already been chosen.

Turkish opposition urged Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to abandon the nuclear program, in light of the recent events in Japan.

Kemal Anadol, deputy head of the opposition People’s Republican Party, said that scientists defined the Akkuyu zone as risky, in terms of seismology. Another party member Tajidar Seyhan expressed the same view.

Greenpeace also urged Turkey to abandon the nuclear power plant projects, head of Greenpeace-Mediterranean Uygar Ozesmi said.

Japanese nuclear power plants Fukushima-1 and Fukushima-2 have been in a state of emergency after the earthquake on March 11. Their cooling systems are malfunctioning. There were three explosions on the first, second and third reactors and a fire on the fourth block. Radioactive waste is releasing radiation due to high temperatures. Cover of the third reactor was damaged by the earthquake.