Turkey has ranked fourth in the list of countries with the highest wind energy installations in Europe, according to the latest WindEurope report, Wind Energy and Economic Recovery in Europe, as the country reached a capacity of 1.4 gigawatts (GW) last year.
The report showcased that Europe has reached 236 GW of installed wind power in 2021.
Last year, 17 GW of new capacity were installed in Europe, with 11 GW of this installation coming from the European Union's 27 member states. Onshore wind capacity constituted 81% of the installations.
According to the report, the United Kingdom made the most wind power installations last year, with 2.64 GW. During this period, 328 megawatts (MW) of onshore wind farms and 2.31 GW of offshore wind farms were installed in the U.K.
The U.K. was followed by Sweden with 2.10 GW of installations and Germany with 1.92 GW.
An earlier report of WindEurope had affirmed that wind energy remains an attractive investment with plenty of available finance for investments in the sector. However, WindEurope advised in the report of the necessity to align the EU and national economic recovery plans with the European Green Deal to help accelerate the transition to a low-carbon energy system.
Most recently on Nov. 28, wind power became Turkey's largest source of electricity generation for the first time in the country's history with a 22.6% share, according to the Turkish Electricity Transmission Corporation (TEIAŞ).
Turkey has prioritized the security of its energy supply as one of the central pillars of its energy strategy, leading to efforts to boost investments in the clean energy sector.
Turkey has seen considerable diversification of its energy mix in the past decade, in particular through the growth of renewable electricity generation.
Turkey's wind capacity and equipment production has grown to the extent that it now ranks as one of the 10 biggest markets globally.
Growth in this sector has already seen Turkey become the fifth-biggest equipment producer in Europe in 2020. And this growth has also helped Turkey expand its exports to 45 countries on six continents.
Of the 77 wind equipment producers in Turkey, 70% generate their revenues from equipment exports.
Turkey ranked among the top five European countries that invested the most in wind energy with its over 1 billion euros ($1.17 billion) of land wind energy investments in 2020, according to WindEurope, the association that advocates for wind energy in Europe and around the globe.
