Türkiye is set to soon announce a new long-term energy road map that will serve as an important basis for the country's 2053 net zero emissions target, Turkish Deputy Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Alparslan Bayraktar said Tuesday.
Speaking at the Clean Energy Outlook Conference in Istanbul organized by the Atlantic Council Türkiye and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), Bayraktar said that the climate crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic, supply chain disruptions, the increase in commodity and energy prices, and on top of that, the Russia-Ukraine war have all had a disruptive effect on the world economy.
Policies designed to fight climate change could be accelerated in this period, he noted, adding that the coming years will be critical in achieving targets to become climate neutral by 2050.
"Renewable energy, energy efficiency, hydrogen, and nuclear are alternative resources that should be utilized with strong and sustainable policies and investments," Bayraktar highlighted.
As a developing economy, Türkiye's energy needs are constantly growing with its gas and electricity demand tripling in the last two decades, therefore, meeting this increasing demand with competitive prices, decreasing the dependency on external sources and reducing the energy bill are at the center of the country's energy policy.
Reiterating that the country became a signatory to the Paris Agreement last year, Bayraktar said that Türkiye pledged to become a carbon-neutral economy by 2053, which makes energy transition a main item on the agenda.
"Regarding the decarbonization, especially of the energy sector, our basic policies could be summarized as such: renewable energy, energy efficiency, nuclear energy, natural gas, and hydrogen," he elaborated.
Renewable energy constitutes 54% of Türkiye's total installed capacity, making it the fifth in Europe and the 12th in the world, according to Bayraktar.
The country invested $6.5 billion for energy efficiency projects in the last 15 years and reduced 16 million tons of carbon emissions, Bayraktar said and pointed to the ongoing efforts for a national energy efficiency action plan after 2023.
"As the ministry, we will share our new long-term road map in energy with the public very soon. This road map will also form an important basis for Türkiye's 2053 net zero emission target. In line with our target of becoming a carbon-neutral economy, a new reform and investment move will be made through regional cooperation. We are entering a new era of gas and electricity with high interconnection capacities with neighboring countries," he stressed.
Geoffrey Pyatt, assistant secretary of state for energy resources at the U.S. State Department, said that Washington is working with its allies and partners to increase and diversify liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies to Europe.
"Since February 70% of U.S. LNG exports have landed in Europe, and the U.S. this year is on track to become the world's largest LNG exporter, reflecting both the U.S. energy resource endowment and the ingenuity and flexibility of our industry," he said.
Stressing that even here, climate concerns remain central, Pyatt said that the U.S. is working with the industry to reduce the intensity of greenhouse gases and natural gas infrastructure across the entire value chain and to sustain progress toward shared climate goals.
"We recognize the important role that our allies and partners play in these efforts. With Türkiye, we have cooperated to advance near medium and long-term projects that diversified energy supplies to Europe. We also greatly appreciate what Türkiye has done using its own new regasification facilities to support the delivery of LNG to its neighbors. Much of this gas infrastructure is linked to the region's accelerated pace out of coal-based power and thereby advances our climate goals as well," Pyatt explained.
Many countries have already prioritized clean energy, however, the standout example is the host country, Türkiye, he said, dubbing the country "a real leader" in this effort with over 50% installed renewable capacity.
As a large economy and a NATO ally, Türkiye fills a critical role in regional efforts to diversify and transition energy supplies, of which TANAP and the Southern Gas Corridor are only the most prominent examples, he concluded.
