Renewable energy potential and utilization in Turkey

Abstract

Energy is an essential factor to achieve sustainable development. Global energy production is growing fastly year by year. Renewable energy technologies such as wind, biomass, hydropower, geothermal and solar are finally showing maturity. With respect to global environmental issues, Turkey’s carbon dioxide emissions have grown along with its energy consumption. States have played a leading role in protecting the environment by reducing emissions of greenhouse gases. In this regard, clean energy resources appear to be the one of the most efficient and effective solutions for sustainable energy development in Turkey. Turkey’s geographical location has several advantages for extensive use of most of these clean energy sources. The use of available renewable energy sources for a cleaner and greener energy production is crucial for a country like Turkey. For this reason, the Turkish government, within the scope of Vision 2023, aims to use renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, wave and geothermal in the most effective way. This study shows that there is enough renewable potential in Turkey for sustainable energy development. Especially hydropower, biomass, solar and wind energy are very well.