The combined share of wind and solar energy in Turkey’s electricity generation reached 18 percent last year, according to Ember’s Turkey Electricity Review 2025, published for the fourth consecutive year, which analyzes electricity generation and consumption data.
The increase in installed solar energy capacity in Turkey has started to reflect in the overall share of solar power in electricity production. Wind energy remained stable, while hydropower generation continued to fluctuate due to periods of drought.
In 2024, solar electricity generation in Turkey increased by 7.3 TWh, representing a 39 percent jump compared to the previous year. This one-year growth nearly reached the entire solar production level of 2018 (7.8 TWh).
The report reveals that the key factor enabling this leap was the opening of pathways for the construction of self-consumption solar power plants. The 7.3 TWh increase in solar production accounted for 32 percent of the total increase in electricity generation.
The highest output was recorded in June, when 3.2 TWh was produced. The share of solar energy in Turkey’s electricity generation reached 7.5 percent in 2024, compared to 5.7 percent in 2023.
„Compared to the 20 European countries with the highest electricity consumption, Turkey in 2024 surpassed Switzerland in terms of solar energy share but remained behind Romania. Romania doubled its solar share from 3.9 percent in 2023 to 7.8 percent in 2024”, the report states.
In comparison to countries with similar solar potential such as Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Greece – where solar energy accounts for 14 to 22 percent of electricity generation – Turkey still lags behind. Poland overtook Turkey in this metric last year, reaching a 9 percent share in 2024.
More:
- Plug-in Solar Systems Conquering the European Market
- New Generation of Solar Cells – Fully Recyclable and Environmentally Friendly
- Revolution from Abu Dhabi: World’s Largest Solar-Battery Project to Produce Energy 24/7
Slowed Growth in Wind Energy
Electricity generation from wind grew by only 5 percent between 2022 and 2024, while capacity increased by 13 percent. Due to the slow construction of new wind farms and growing electricity demand, the share of wind power in total production showed only marginal growth – reaching 10.7 percent in 2024, up from 10.6 percent in 2023.
Nevertheless, Turkey still outperforms Norway, Italy, and France in terms of the share of wind energy in electricity generation in 2024.
Across Europe, a decline in new wind installations is observed, mainly due to rising turbine installation costs.
Turkey’s targets for 2035, presented during COP29, envision a fourfold increase in current wind and solar power capacity. If achieved, the share of fossil fuels in electricity generation could fall below 20 percent, while wind and solar power could jointly reach 49 percent.
