Izmir Development Agency (IZKA) is encouraging international players to collaborate with the western port city of Izmir in wind energy, the coordinator of IZKA's BEST For Energy initiative, Hülya Ulusoy Sungur, said on Wednesday.
Speaking at this year's WindEurope conference in Bilbao, Spain, Sungur hailed Izmir as a production hub of wind sector equipment that helps position Turkey in fifth place in Europe in wind energy equipment manufacturing.
She said the port city, dubbed "the wind capital of Turkey," has dealt in trade for decades, serving as a conduit between Asia and Europe.
The province has also made significant progress in clean energy technologies over the last 20 years.
"We are trying to become a network hub that stimulates collaborative action among members. We have good companies, a strong infrastructure and good quality products. We have flexible production and a qualified workforce, but we know these are not enough. We are looking to the future. To build the future together, we need international collaboration," she said.
The large region with a diversified and multisectoral economy, ranging from agriculture to defense, aviation, automotives, machinery and textiles, has become competent in wind energy production, equipment manufacturing and services seeing to logistics and maintenance.
"It has 16 ports, 10 universities, five technoparks, 16 organized industrial zones, three free zones and a population of 4.4 million," she said.
As part of the wind sector's global supply chain, Sungur encouraged international cooperation in the clean energy sector to increase its strength and competitiveness.
The wind energy ecosystem involves 300 shareholders with original equipment manufacturers and hosts international research centers and academic, financial and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs).
A study visit by Turkish officials and entrepreneurs was organized as part of the BEST For Energy (Boosting Effective and Sustainable Transformation for Energy) Project, supported by the European Commission within the scope of the Competitive Sectors Program of Turkey’s Ministry of Industry and Technology.
Initiated in the third quarter of 2020, IZKA, along with the Association of Energy Industrialists and Businessmen (ENSIA) headquartered in Izmir, has overseen the BEST For Energy project to promote green growth and achieve environmentally focused, sustainable economic development goals through structural development.