Türkiye Electricity Review 2026

The Türkiye Electricity Review 2026 by Ember analyzes Türkiye's electricity generation in 2025, highlighting a rapid shift toward wind and solar energy, which reached a record 22% share. Despite this growth, coal remains the primary power source at 34%, with a significant reliance on imports. The report also details the economic impact of drought on hydropower and Türkiye's substantial battery storage project pipeline.

• In 2025, wind and solar energy reached a record 22% of Türkiye's electricity generation, with solar generation doubling from 18.4 TWh in 2023 to 37.3 TWh in 2025. However, the combined annual additions of 6.5 GW in 2025 are below the 8 GW per year required to meet the 2035 target of 120 GW total wind and solar capacity.
• Coal was the largest source of electricity generation in 2025 at 34%, with approximately two-thirds of this production relying on imports. While coal generation declined slightly to 121 TWh in 2025 from 122 TWh in 2024, a purchase guarantee for domestic coal plants starting in 2026 may increase utilization rates and lead to new records in generation.
• Persistent drought has caused a long-term decline in hydroelectric generation, with the average annual production of the Atatürk, Karakaya, and Keban dams being 29% lower over the last decade than in 1996–2005. This shortfall is compensated by natural gas generation, resulting in an average annual increase of $1.8 billion in fossil gas imports.
• Türkiye has developed a battery project pipeline of 33 GW, which is larger than that of any individual European Union country; for comparison, Germany and Italy have pipelines and operational capacities of around 12–13 GW each. This pipeline represents 83% of Türkiye's current 40 GW wind and solar capacity.
• Despite its regional leadership in the Middle East, Caucasus, and Central Asia, Türkiye's renewable energy share in electricity generation (approximately 43%) remains below the European Union average of 48%. In 2025, Türkiye ranked 14th in solar share and 15th in wind share among 24 high-generating European countries.
• To achieve its 2035 goals, Türkiye requires an estimated $28 billion in additional grid investment. The report notes that permitting remains a major bottleneck, though a 2025 "super permit" reform aims to reduce timelines to 18 months for both wind and solar projects.

APA

Alparslan, U. (2026). Türkiye Electricity Review 2026. Ember. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2026/04/Turkiye-Electricity-Review-2026.pdf

Chicago

Alparslan, Ufuk. Türkiye Electricity Review 2026. Ember, 2026. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2026/04/Turkiye-Electricity-Review-2026.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Alparslan |first1=Ufuk |title=Türkiye Electricity Review 2026 |publisher=Ember |date=8 April 2026 |url=https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2026/04/Turkiye-Electricity-Review-2026.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{alparslan2026trkiye, author = {Alparslan, Ufuk}, title = {{Türkiye Electricity Review 2026}}, institution = {Ember}, year = {2026}, month = apr, url = {https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2026/04/Turkiye-Electricity-Review-2026.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }