Türkiye targets to lift wind, solar capacity to 175,000 MW by 2040

ISTANBUL

Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar spoke at the “National Energy 2040” launch meeting. (AA Photo)

Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said Türkiye would reach 175,000 megawatts of installed wind and solar power capacity by 2040, with the required investment estimated at approximately $100 billion.

Speaking at the “National Energy 2040” launch meeting on Nov. 5, Bayraktar outlined Türkiye’s energy investment targets for the new period.

Bayraktar said Türkiye aimed to reduce its dependence on foreign energy resources to below 50 percent by 2030.

The minister noted that Türkiye had 123,000 MW of installed capacity as of 2025 and that this capacity would increase through new investments.

Türkiye’s total installed capacity is projected to reach 281,000 MW by 2040, Bayraktar said.

“With an increase of approximately 160 MW, we need to build between one and one-and-a-half times as much capacity as we have built to date over the next 13 to 14 years. Türkiye’s installed capacity will rise to 281,000 MW,” he said.

“The share of renewables will rise from 63 percent to 77 percent,” Bayraktar said.

“By 2040, Türkiye will, hopefully, reach 175,000 MW of installed wind and solar power capacity. Offshore wind is included in this figure. The investment required will be approximately $100 billion,” he said.

Bayraktar said Türkiye would focus on offshore wind power, international investment partnerships, capacity increases at existing power plants and hybrid systems to reach its target of 175,000 MW of renewable energy capacity.

He said Türkiye aimed to reach 6,000 MW of installed offshore wind power capacity by 2040, adding that the country’s first offshore wind Renewable Energy Resource Area (YEKA) tender was planned for April next year and that its specifications would be announced in November.

Bayraktar said Türkiye aimed to add at least 5,000 MW of nuclear power capacity by 2040 on top of the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant’s 4,800 MW capacity, bringing the total to 10,000 MW.

“Our target for 2050 is 20,000 MW. We want at least 5,000 MW of this to come from small modular reactors. By 2040, Türkiye will meet 11 percent of its total electricity needs through nuclear power,” he said.

Bayraktar said the demand and supply sides would be regulated together during the electrification process, adding that Türkiye’s energy demand in 2040 was estimated at 230 million tons of oil equivalent.

He said electrification would increase across all areas of the Turkish economy and that a strong electricity infrastructure would be needed to support this process.

“We aim to increase electricity demand not to 551 terawatt-hours, but to 680 terawatt-hours, thereby expanding electrification and electricity demand. Most of the demand will come from electric vehicles,” the minister said.

Bayraktar said data centers would be another area of growth, adding that Türkiye’s projections for 2040 included an additional 55 terawatt-hours of electricity demand from such facilities.