Turkey’s renewable surge cuts billions in fossil fuel imports and emissions
Turkey generated 442.2 TWh from wind and solar between 2015 and 2025, avoiding $21.5 billion in coal imports and cutting hundreds of millions of tonnes of CO₂.
According to the Energy and Natural Resources Ministry, Turkey produced 442.2 terawatt-hours of electricity from wind and solar sources from 2015 through 2025. This renewable output eliminated the need for $21.5 billion worth of coal imports and would have saved $43.3 billion in natural-gas imports if the same power had been generated from gas. The shift prevented an estimated 354 million tonnes of CO₂ compared with coal-fired generation, and about 177 million tonnes when benchmarked against gas-fired plants.
In 2015 alone, solar and wind supplied 11,847 GWh, averting $300 million in coal costs and 9.5 million tonnes of emissions. Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar highlighted the achievement as part of Turkey’s 2053 net-zero and full energy-independence objectives and affirmed continued expansion of renewable capacity.
Why it matters
The renewable surge reduces Turkey’s reliance on costly fossil-fuel imports and cuts a large share of greenhouse-gas emissions.
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