Minister urges more investment in energy
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Hürriyet Daily News
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Nisan 18, 2009 00:00
ISTANBUL - Encouraging the use of renewable energy resources in the following decades should be a priority for both the private sector and the government, Energy Minister Hilmi Güler said Friday.
Speaking at a conference titled "Powering Turkey," Güler said the country may produce 90,000 megawatts in total if all the necessary investments are completed by the year 2020.
Güler pointed to the significance of "the triangle of energy, environment and agriculture," adding that food and the environment will have increasing importance in the future, potentially affecting decisions to build new power plants.
The increase in the number of private hydroelectric power plants in Turkey is derived from the "environment of trust" created by the government and new regulations aiming to ease private investment in the sector, he added.
The private sector and domestic industry will be encouraged toward those investments, Güler said. The Domestic Industry Platform, or YERSAN, has recently been established to use domestic products in building solar or wind power plants, the minister said, adding that a local drill for petroleum is produced for the first time in Turkey with this project.
Although Güler said alternative renewable energy solutions such as wind energy should be used more, he said coal and natural gas will also be used in producing electricity in a safer way.
Hasan Köktaş, the head of Turkey's Energy Market Regulation Agency, said their goal is to make the private sector the only actor in electricity distribution by 2020. Electricity demand increases 8 or 9 percent each year, he said, adding that the agency aims to use almost all the potential in hydroelectricity, geothermal and solar power areas by 2023 to compensate for the growing need.
The conference was organized by EFG Istanbul Securities.
Güler pointed to the significance of "the triangle of energy, environment and agriculture," adding that food and the environment will have increasing importance in the future, potentially affecting decisions to build new power plants.
The increase in the number of private hydroelectric power plants in Turkey is derived from the "environment of trust" created by the government and new regulations aiming to ease private investment in the sector, he added.
The private sector and domestic industry will be encouraged toward those investments, Güler said. The Domestic Industry Platform, or YERSAN, has recently been established to use domestic products in building solar or wind power plants, the minister said, adding that a local drill for petroleum is produced for the first time in Turkey with this project.
Although Güler said alternative renewable energy solutions such as wind energy should be used more, he said coal and natural gas will also be used in producing electricity in a safer way.
Hasan Köktaş, the head of Turkey's Energy Market Regulation Agency, said their goal is to make the private sector the only actor in electricity distribution by 2020. Electricity demand increases 8 or 9 percent each year, he said, adding that the agency aims to use almost all the potential in hydroelectricity, geothermal and solar power areas by 2023 to compensate for the growing need.
The conference was organized by EFG Istanbul Securities.