Renewable electricity share in Turkey nears 50%

Renewable sources had a 49.3% share in electricity production in Turkey last month, compared to 35.7% in March 2023. Minister of Treasury and Finance Mehmet Şimşek estimated the upcoming investments in green and clean energy in the next ten years at USD 100 billion.

Turkey is continuing to strengthen its economy by increasing the share of domestic and renewable sources in electricity production, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Alparslan Bayraktar said on social media. He shared an infographic showing that renewables had a 49.3% share of domestic output in March, while the share amounted to 35.7% one year before.

It should be noted that wind, solar and hydropower depend on weather conditions. For instance, a drought can heavily hurt the operations of hydroelectric plants.

As for the domestic sources segment, which Turkey also tracks closely, they accounted for 63.6% last month against 51.3% from the previous March, according to the reading.

Share of renewables reaches 55% of electricity capacity

Separately, Minister of Treasury and Finance Mehmet Şimşek noted in a speech that renewables now make up 55% of the country’s electricity generation capacity. He claimed that USD 100 billion would be invested in green and clean energy over the next decade.

The commissioning of the Akkuyu nuclear power plant will further decrease foreign dependency in the energy sector, Şimşek pointed out. The energy transition is a necessity, in his view.

The minister stressed that Turkey paid USD 97 billion in 2022 for gas and oil imports and USD 70 billion last year. “If oil prices remain at this level for the rest of the year, we forecast around USD 77 billion,” he stated. Reducing the bill will help the government improve the management of macrofinancial instability risks related to the current acount deficit.

But the country is developing its own gas and oil sources, too. Şimşek estimated that their share in domestic consumption would reach 25% in the coming years. Turkey’s share in the global economy is 1.1%, he said and added that the government in Ankara aims to boost it to 2%.

Solar power amounted to three quarters of newly installed capacity in 2023

In its latest statistical report, International Renewable Energy Agency said Turkey had 58.5 GW of renewable electricity capacity online at the end of 2023 or 4.5% more than one year before.

Solar power accounted for almost a fifth of the total and just under three quarters of last year’s additions. The segment surged by a stunning 19.8% to 11.3 GW.