The 13th Turkish Wind Energy Congress (TWEC 2024), organized by the Turkish Wind Energy Association (TUREB) with the motto, ‘Energy of the Future, Future of Türkiye,’ kicked off on Tuesday in Istanbul.
With Anadolu as the Global Communication Partner, TWEC 2024, a global platform for wind energy innovation, brings together experts from Europe and beyond.
Speaking at the event, Ibrahim Erden, TUREB president, said that TWEC 2024 is not only a congress but also an important platform where the strategic roadmap of the sector for the future is discussed.
“For the realization of this strong future, as TUREB and the sector, we want to strongly declare that we are aspiring to realize 5 gigawatts of wind investment per year,” he added.
Noting that Türkiye aims to increase its installed capacity of solar and wind energy by four times by 2035, Erden said: “With this renewable energy production, it is possible to achieve a decrease of nearly 15 percent in average electricity prices in the coming years.”
“With more wind and more renewable energy, we will be able to save more than 14 billion dollars in energy imports by 2035,” he added.
For his part, Giles Dickson, CEO of WindEurope congratulated Türkiye for its “excellent new renewable energy strategy for 2035.”
“120 gigawatts renewable energy capacity by 2035, of which we understand 40% will be wind. That is truly impressive,” Dickson said.
Türkiye now produces 13 gigawatts of wind energy, of which 11% of all of the electricity that it consumes, he said.
“In WindEurope, this is a very hard-nosed WindEurope assessment, we think you’re going to double by 2030. You’ll get from 13 gigawatts to 26 gigawatts.”
Noting that Europe is “very hungry for your wind energy equipment,” he said.
“Europe at the moment is building between 18 and 20 gigawatts a year of new wind farms. That number is rising significantly. And of course, we have lots of factories inside the European Union, but we need the Turkish supply chain as well.”
“We need you, and in the rest of Europe you have a big and rapidly growing market for the equipment that you want to produce here,” he noted.
“So it is in your interests to continue to strengthen Türkiye’s wind energy supply chain.”
Dickson also said the EU is even more committed to the energy transition.
“There is a solid majority of members of the European Parliament who want to accelerate the build-out of renewables and grids, and the new European Commission, under the leadership still of Ursula von der Leyen, is doubling down on its commitment to the energy transition. They want even faster build-out of wind.”
Pointing out that the EU is getting out of Russian gas, Dickson said: “Imports have fallen by over half since the war started in 2022. Now the new European Commission is determined to go one step further and stop the Russian LNG imports into Europe as well. No more Russian gas imports into Europe. That is the clear policy.”
He also said that the TUREB is part of the WindEurope family and added that the WindEurope Technology Workshop is coming to Istanbul next year.
