Türkiye's installed electricity capacity reached 104,348 megawatts (MW) as of the end of March, and wind power capacity reached 11,426 MW, data showed Thursday.
While the share of renewable energy sources in electricity production is increasing, wind energy's share in Türkiye's installed electricity capacity has reached 10.9%, the data obtained from the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources revealed.
The installed wind power capacity, which is mostly composed of licensed power plants, is spread across 47 provinces in Türkiye.
Unlicensed wind energy power plants, with a total capacity of 88.4 MW, are located in 15 provinces.
The western city of Izmir has the highest installed capacity in wind energy with 1,754.9 MW, followed by Balıkesir, another city in the west, with a capacity of 1,382.4 MW.
Çanakkale followed them with 943.7 MW, Istanbul with 838.7 MW and Manisa with 701.7 MW.
Bursa, Hatay, Aydın, Kırklareli and Kayseri are among the top 10 cities with the highest installed wind energy capacity.
Meanwhile, according to data from the Turkish Wind Energy Association (TÜREB), the wind energy sector in Türkiye is growing not only in capacity but also in equipment production.
According to TÜREB, over 100 companies operating in this field in Türkiye export wind energy equipment to 44 countries on six continents. Wind energy equipment exports make up approximately 70% of these companies revenue.
With increasing concerns over climate change and the high cost of imported energy, Türkiye has been taking steps to develop its renewable energy sector and in recent years, has invested heavily in related sectors.
The country’s current renewable capacity accounts for over half of the country's total installed power capacity, which stood at 104,488 MW by April 7.
After a hydropower capacity of around 31,600 MW, wind is the second-biggest renewable source of electricity at 11,490 MW. Türkiye's solar power installations reached 9,820 MW in the same period.
Moreover, at least 1,000 MW of wind and solar energy capacity each is expected to be added to the country’s renewable portfolio in 2023.
Renewables accounted for over 95% of new capacity increases in the country in 2021. The country achieved a record-high annual increase in wind energy in 2021 with the addition of approximately 1,750 MW, up from the previous all-time high of 1,248 MW added in 2016.
Türkiye is forecast to see around 64% growth in its renewable energy capacity to 90 gigawatts (GW) in the next five years, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA), with almost 75% of this addition being solar and wind.
The growth will help it rank fourth in Europe and among the 10 biggest renewable markets in the world.
Türkiye ranks fifth in Europe and 12th in the world in renewable energy installed capacity. It is seventh in Europe and 12th in the world when it comes to wind energy installed power.
