Turkey to grant 40% to farmers for solar power systems – report

The Turkish government will launch a support scheme for agricultural producers who want to install solar power plants, according to a domestic media outlet, which learned the beneficiaries would get grants covering 40% of the cost and that they would be able to apply for cheap loans for the remainder.

After President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan promised support for agriculture and irrigation, Yeni Şafak reported, without identifying its sources, that the government would provide grants of 40% for farmers who want to build their own photovoltaic systems. Minister of Finance and Treasury Nureddin Nebati will announce the measure tomorrow, the media outlet added.

Subsidized long-term loans will be offered for the remaining amount of investments and the country’s Southeastern Anatolia Project (GAP) for regional development will cover most of the funds, the report reveals. More than 100 large irrigation facilities are due to be completed this year, according to the article.

Small farmers will get access to portable solar panels to produce electricity for pumping water, the news outlet learned.

Erdoğan also said the upcoming scheme is intended to rapidly increase the use of solar power in irrigation. Municipalities and industrial producers will be able to build larger electricity generation units for own consumption and the tax exemption limit for households will be lifted to 25 kW from 10 kW, he stressed.

Also of note, Bloomberg wrote, citing unnamed people with knowledge of the matter, that the Energy Market Regulatory Authority (EMRA or EPDK) is planning to introduce a complex mechanism for price ceilings for electricity producers as part of the government’s efforts to cushion the blow from the jump in energy prices and inflation overall.

The measure will enable subsidies for power plants that use imported coal and gas, the report said, adding that “others, mostly solar and wind parks, will be selling power to the national grid at lower prices.”