Japan to sign Turkey nuclear deal The Turkish government is expected to sign a deal later with a Japanese-French consortium to build a new nuclear power station. The contract is estimated to be worth $22bn (£14bn). It is expected to be signed by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during a visit to Turkey. The deal comes as part of renewed efforts to promote Japanese nuclear technologies abroad, despite concerns over safety. One of the Japanese firms included in the consortium is Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, one of the companies behind the Fukushima plant damaged in an earthquake in 2011. Turkey is also prone to earthquakes, and the government cited Japan's expertise in earthquake protection as one of the factors in signing the deal. The other firms are Itochu Corporation and French utility group GDF Suez. Japan is looking to boost exports of its technological expertise as it attempts to boost economic growth and escape two decades of near-stagnant growth. Fast-growing Turkey, meanwhile, is looking to invest in domestic energy generation to reduce its dependency on imports as the economy expands. The new nuclear plant will be Turkey's second. It currently imports almost 97% of its energy needs.