Istanbul could face electricity cuts if big investments not made: Minister

BEIJING

Istanbul could face a serious electricity shortage over the next couple of years unless necessary investments are made, Energy Minister Berat Albayrak told journalists flying with him from Beijing to Ankara after a meeting of G-20 energy ministers.

“If required investments to renew the outmoded infrastructure are not made immediately, Istanbul will face serious power cuts in the next three to five years. We have been carrying large amounts of electricity from Anatolia and the Black Sea region to Istanbul, which poses a big risk,” Albayrak said, daily Milliyet reported on July 4.

He added that the Marmara region, where Istanbul is located, consumes a third of Turkey’s total electricity use.
The government will open new tenders in the upcoming period to gradually increase the use of local coal reserves in Turkey’s electricity production, Albayrak said.

“Some claim that Turkey is turning to coal reserves at a time when the world is turning to renewables. But it should be remembered that the share of the use of coal reserves in Turkey is just 13 percent, which is much lower than the world average of 35-40 percent,” he added.

The energy minister said the aim was to make new coal-fired power plants reach capacities of more than 4,000 megawatts (MW).

The government had recently stated that 85 percent of Turkey’s electricity infrastructure will be modernized over the next five years, with an investment of around 18 billion Turkish Liras.