The Group of Twenty is expected to boost the adaptation and use of clean energy, Turkey’s acting energy minister Ali Rıza Alaboyun told Anadolu Agency. Energy sustainability is one of the key themes for the G20 under the Turkish presidency. Its leaders adopted principles for collaboration, the agency’s Energy Terminal reported.
Energy Sustainability Working Group (ESWG) within G20 has requested the International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena), in close cooperation with the International Energy Agency (IEA) as well as other regional organizations, to develop a toolkit of options to accelerate renewable energy deployment, Alaboyun explained.
He added that the toolkit, or guide, can be used as a basis for countries to develop their own customized renewable energy policies taking into account national circumstances and each nation’s sustainable development priorities. The G20 member countries are hosting 80% of existing renewable power generation capacity around the world. In 2013, member countries provided 82% of global renewable capacity additions. Moreover, member countries installed more than half of new power generation capacity from renewables. Alaboyun said that Turkey will keep the momentum going over the next following months to install more green energy capacity.
Unlicensed renewable applications amount to more than 8,500, 80% of which are for solar energy while 20% is from wind energy, he said and added that licensed wind energy capacity in the country is around 7 GW.
Turkey’s wind energy applications are on the rise. Alaboyun underlined that upcoming government deals will have more capacity applications. He said that for 2016, wind energy license applications of up to 3 GW capacity are received while applications for a further 2 GW capacity are pending.
Turkey’s installed capacity reached 72.46 GW by the end of October, according to data from the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources. The country’s installed capacity rose by 5% during the first ten months of this year, from 69.5 GW at the end of 2014. The number of power plants rose to 407 by the end of October, from 126 at the end of 2014.
