Türkiye to increase energy investments with zero emission target

ANKARA

Energy and Natural Resources Minister Fatih Dönmez has stated that in addition to conventional nuclear power plants, small and medium-sized modular reactors (SMR) have also been included in the agenda for the “zero emission” target envisaged for 2053.

“The electricity we will produce from nuclear energy in 2035 will reach 11.1 percent of our total production,” he said while announcing Türkiye National Energy Plan and Türkiye Hydrogen Technologies Strategy and Roadmap.

Green hydrogen will help decarbonize energy-intensive industries such as petrochemicals, iron and steel, and cement, Dönmez said.

“One of the most important investments we will make in line with our net zero emission target will be in the field of nuclear energy,” he added.

“In 2035, the electricity we will generate from nuclear energy will reach 11.1 percent of our total production. In addition to conventional nuclear power plants, SMRs are now on our agenda. Hopefully, we will add SMRs to our energy portfolio in addition to our planned and ongoing nuclear power plants.”

The minister noted that investments in renewable energy will continue.
“We foresee an increase of approximately 39.5 percent in our energy consumption in 12 years,” Dönmez said.

“Among our energy consumption, renewable energy sources will increase to 23.7 percent in 2035. Around 75 percent of our capacity increase in the aforementioned period will come from renewable sources, primarily solar and wind,” he added.

In 2035, Türkiye’s installed electric power will increase to 52,900 megawatts in solar energy, 29,600 megawatts in wind, 35,100 megawatts in hydroelectric, and 5,100 megawatts in geothermal and biomass, Dönmez stated.

Speaking on the country’s hydrogen energy strategy, Dönmez noted that hydrogen production methods using fossil fuels cause large carbon emissions and that green hydrogen is starting to become attractive.

“The green hydrogen, which we obtain by using renewable energy sources through the electrolysis of water, will be an important instrument for our net zero emission target,” he said.

“It will greatly help decarbonize energy-intensive industries such as petrochemicals, iron and steel, cement, glass and ceramics. Producing hydrogen where it is primarily consumed in energy-intensive sectors will be more economical and much easier as it will reduce transportation and storage costs.”

Dönmez also added that Türkiye continues its investment in the country’s natural gas infrastructure.

“We are constantly improving our infrastructure,” he said. “We will increase the number of our four LNG [liquefied natural gas] facilities, two of which are floating LNG storage and gasification units [FSRU], to five with the new FSRU we will commission in Saros.”