Forty firms competing for five wind farm projects at Turkish auction

Applicants oversubscribed the upcoming auction for wind power plants in predetermined areas in Turkey by 18 times. There are 100 preliminary bids for an overall 21.74 GW from 40 companies, for zones for five projects of 1.2 GW in total. Applications for the solar power auction are due today.

Turkey’s current wind farm and solar park auction call drew a tremendous response from investors. The mechanism is called Renewable Energy Zones (REZ), better known by its Turkish acronym YEKA.

One hundred applications from 40 companies submitted documentation and initial bids to qualify for the wind power auction. The zones for five wind parks are in the provinces of Edirne, Kırklareli and Sivas.

They are envisaged for 1.2 GW in total. The commission appointed by the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources received bids that put together amount to 21.74 GW. It means the call was 18 times oversubscribed, implying strong competition.

Interest was relatively balanced among the zones. Notably, fewer bids came in for bigger projects and vice versa. The commission registered 26 applications for Gürün, the smallest zone, at 90 MW. There were only 14 for the largest one, Edirne (410 MW).

Only the five lowest bids proceed to the auction, due tomorrow, for each zone in the REZ WPP-2024 – YEKA RES-2024 round. Alternatively, more companies can be allowed in if their levels are equal as the highest on the shortlist. Winners get power purchase agreements starting with six years on the open market, but with a guaranteed bottom price in the form of a contract for difference.

Different renewable energy era begins

A different era has begun in renewable energy with the applications under a changed wind farm auction model, the ministry stressed. Chairman of Turkish Wind Energy Association (TÜREB or TWEA) İbrahim Erden said the national target to add 5 GW per year is important for investment confidence.

In other related news, Kalyon Energy (Enerji) said that this year it would put five facilities into operation that it won at the YEKA RES-3 auction for wind farm projects in 2022. Total investment is EUR 290 billion, according to the company.

The projects consist of 54 Enercon wind turbines, for an overall 220 MW. The biggest one, Bilecik, is for 70 MW, followed by 50 MW in Ankara. Facilities in Elazığ and Bayburt would be 40 MW each, while the one in Trabzon is seen at 20 MW.

Solar power auction qualifications underway

In addition, qualification applications are due today for the 800 MW solar power auction, called REZ SPP-2024 – YEKA GES-2024.

Akfen Renewable Energy (Akfen Yenilenebilir Enerji) said it submitted the documents for 335 MW in total, for designated zones Karaman (200 MW), Malatya (72 MW) and Van (60 MW).

Turkey hosts photovoltaic systems and wind power plants of more than 33 GW combined.