Turkey aims to reach 20,000 megawatts (MW) of installed capacity in wind energy by 2023, Hakan Yıldırım, the president of the Turkish Wind Energy Association (TWEA), told Anadolu Agency’s (AA) Energy Desk in an exclusive interview on Wednesday.
The country's favorable geographic location provides a potential capacity for 48,000 MW wind energy, according to the Turkish Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources.
"Turkey's installed wind energy capacity has surpassed 7,600 MW with 3,500 turbines," Yıldırım said, adding that "we need to use domestic resources to carry Turkey's renewable energy potential to higher levels."
He noted that Turkey added around 1,300-1,400 MW wind energy capacity in 2016. "However, that level decreased to 495 MW in 2018, and 450 MW in 2019. These figures are not acceptable. We have to take those numbers to around 1,000 MW every year. We have to recreate the same excitement that was felt in wind energy a decade ago."
MOST TURBINE COMPONENTS MANUFACTURED IN TURKEY
Yıldırım said investors in the wind energy sector, both domestic and foreign, have two main expectations for the industry.
"First, they want to foresee the potential in Turkey. They want to reach their projected cash flow. The second thing investors want is to see their projects to be supported financially, as banks pay close attention to this," he said.
"The biggest expectation for domestic and foreign investors in the wind sector is that they want to be able to foresee the next 10 years," the TWEA President underlined.
Companies that manufacture components for wind turbines are also considered as investors, according to Yıldırım, who said manufacturers also want to foresee the next decade in the wind industry.
He underlined that banks do not have any concerns today to invest in renewable energy in Turkey. "Today, banks and investment firms love renewable energy, because it's a field that affects the global economy and will shape the next 15 years."
He stressed that the capabilities needed for designing, manufacturing and building wind turbines are different from selling them. Yıldırım noted that design to mass production costs around 200 million euros ($222.43 million).
"We have started to manufacture most of the components of wind turbines in Turkey," he said, adding only a small portion of wind turbine components used in Turkey are imported from abroad and that enables the capital to stay in the Turkish economy.
The head of TWEA said there are still innovations in wind power technology that could lower costs, noting that the cost of production for 1 megawatt-hour (MWh) of electricity fell to $55 for wind, $45 for solar and $75 for natural gas.
Since TWEA was established in 1992, the non-profit association focuses on being inclusive, Yıldırım said, and added, "You need different ideas to form shared wisdom and turn them into reality."
"As an association, we give utmost importance to coordination and integration. We consult with our partners, develop common ideas and put them into motion together," he said.
Yıldırım said the upcoming Turkish Wind Energy Conference (TWEC) next month will be attended by more than 100 participants in the wind energy sector.
He concluded that the 8th TWEC, which will be held on Nov. 5-6 in Turkish capital Ankara, will be attended by Energy and Natural Resources Minister Fatih Dönmez and Minister of Industry and Technology Mustafa Varank.