MHI, Itochu to Own 33.4 Pct or More of Turkey N-Plant Operator

Tokyo, March 20 (Jiji Press)--Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. <7011> and Itochu Corp. <8001> are seen snapping up a combined stake of 33.4 pct or more in a new nuclear power plant operator in Turkey so that they can veto important management decisions, informed sources told Jiji Press on Thursday. Turkish state-run power company EUAS is set to become the top shareholder of the new company, with a 49 pct stake. The rest will be owned by GDF Suez of France, the sources said. The new nuclear power firm will be set up as early as summer this year. The four companies jointly won the project last October. Four nuclear reactors developed by the pair of Mitsubishi Heavy and France's Areva SA will be built. Each reactor is estimated to cost about 500 billion yen. The first of the four reactors is expected to go on stream in 2023. END