Yeniköy Kemerköy Energy (YK Energy) corporation, which has been carrying out work in the authorized section of the Akbelen Forest in Türkiye’s southern Muğla province, rejected claims accusing it of deforestation and environmental damage.

In a statement, the corporation said the authorized mining field is located in the forest, which has an industrial wood capacity of 93% with an economic forestation area of 7%. The statement noted that the forest is not a national park, a nature park, a protected site, a protection forest, or a forest with ecological or socio-cultural purposes and neither is it a neighbor to such sites.

"As YK Energy, we carry out our mining operations and electricity production in line with global standards, under the framework of the vision of sustainability," the statement said.

The statement also noted that YK Energy provides crucial public services by providing 62% of the electricity used in Türkiye’s southern resort areas with its power plants.

Mine workers and labor union officials have protested opposition to the mine's expansion in the Akbelen Forest, noting that it is a vital source of income and employment for thousands of people living in the region and proposed plans to expand the mine do not pose a threat to the environment.