Tendering for 4 wind farms launched, ceiling price set at USD 0.055/kWh

Turkey’s Energy and Natural Resources Ministry has launched tendering for the construction of four wind farms with a total installed capacity of 1,000 MW, according to reports.

This is the second wind power tendering announcement issued by the ministry. In August last year, the ministry awarded a 1 GW wind farm to a consortium including two Turkish companies – infrastructure development firm Kalyon Enerji, investment firm Turkerler Holding, and turbine manufacturer Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy. The consortium had offered the lowest price, of USD 0.0348/kWh.

The ceiling price in the second auction is set at USD 0.055/kWh, while the government will pledge to purchase energy from the plants over a 15-year period, according to reports that cited Turkey’s Official Gazette.

The wind farms will be located in the Aegean provinces of Balikesir, Canakkale, Aydin, and Mugla.

According to the Turkish media, the applicants must submit a minimum one-year bank guarantee worth USD 2.5 million, while the best bidder must offer a minimum 10-year bank guarantee of USD 12.5 million.

The deadline to submit offers is March 7, 2019.

A month ago, the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources announced that a 1 GW solar tender will be launched in January, with a 30 MW/ 90 MWh (AC) storage project to be included.

In April, Berat Albayrak, Turkey’s energy and natural resources minister, announced Turkey’s plans to invite 10 GW of solar and 10 GW of wind tenders in next 10 years as a part of Turkey’s Renewable Energy Resource Zone (YEKA) project.

In terms of energy growth demand, Turkey ranks second in the world, behind China. Its energy sector is heavily dependent on imports with an average of EUR 35 billion in energy imports.

The YEKA model was introduced by the Turkish government in 2016 to commission large-scale renewable energy projects through the utilization of locally-manufactured components in renewable power plants.