Türkiye aims to reach 175,000 megawatts of installed wind and solar capacity by 2040, Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said on Thursday as he presented the government’s "Milli Enerji 2040" (National Energy 2040) vision, Anadolu Agency, İHA and Takvim reported.
The launch took place at the Presidency’s Dolmabahçe Working Office in Istanbul, according to Anadolu Agency, UHA and Marmara Haber. Bayraktar said the stated aim was an energy-independent Türkiye, Anadolu Agency, UHA and Yeni Akit reported.
Electrification at the centre
The roadmap is built around electrification. Bayraktar said electricity would account for 36 percent of the Turkish economy’s energy use by 2040, İHA and Takvim reported. Renewable sources are to supply about 70 percent of the country’s energy by 2040, according to Anadolu Agency, UHA and Marmara Haber.
Bayraktar said energy demand would keep rising with population and economic growth, and with artificial intelligence, data centres, electric transport and desalination, Anadolu Agency and Takvim reported. He cited projections that Türkiye’s population would reach 91.5 million by 2040 and that the economy would grow to about 1.9 times its current size, according to Anadolu Agency, İHA and Yeni Akit.
Cutting the import bill
The minister said Türkiye’s energy imports cost about 90 billion dollars, a burden he linked to the current account deficit, Anadolu Agency, Yeni Akit and Takvim reported. Dependence on imported energy stood at around 67-68 percent and should fall below 50 percent, according to İHA and Takvim.
Bayraktar pointed to energy efficiency, citing a 30 percent energy-saving target set for public buildings, according to İHA and Takvim. He said oil and natural gas would remain part of the mix and that the goal was a Türkiye that produces its own oil and gas, Anadolu Agency, Yeni Akit and Takvim reported.
Nuclear power must be part of the energy mix, Bayraktar said, according to Anadolu Agency, İHA and UHA. The national energy plan is to be revised every five years, Anadolu Agency, Yeni Akit and Takvim reported.
Antalya hosts COP31, the UN climate conference, from 9 to 20 November, TRT Haber and Marmara Haber reported, and the ministry’s targets are also to be shared there, according to TRT Haber and Takvim.
Sources
- Bakan Bayraktar: Türkiye 2040 itibarıyla 175 bin megavatlık rüzgar ve güneş kurulu gücüne ulaşacak (Anadolu Ajansı)
- Bakan Bayraktar: Türkiye ekonomisi 2040’ta yüzde 36 elektrikleşecek (İHA / Haberler.com)
- Milli Enerji 2040: Bayraktar’dan canlı açıklamalar (Takvim)
- Bakan Bayraktar Duyurdu: Milli Enerji 2040 Vizyonu Açıklandı (UHA)
- Bakan Bayraktar’dan 2040 için dikkat çeken açıklama! Türkiye’nin enerji planı belli oldu (Yeni Akit)
- Milli Enerji 2040 Vizyonu Açıklandı (Marmara Haber)
- Milli enerji vizyonu bugün açıklanacak: 2040’a uzanan yol haritası hazır (TRT Haber)
Photo: Karelj / CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
