World Bank said Monday it has begun preparations for a new financing operation in the field of electricity transmission in Türkiye that could reach $750 million, commending the country’s renewable goals.
The lender’s country director Humberto Lopez’s remarks came during a panel titled "New Targets for Net Zero Emissions: Transforming Türkiye with Solar, Wind, and Smart Grids," organized by the World Bank within the scope of COP28 of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
"It is very good news that Türkiye announced that it will establish 60 gigawatts of renewable energy production capacity in 12 years," Lopez said referring to earlier remarks of Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar.
The minister said Monday that Türkiye aims to increase installed electricity capacity to 190 gigawatts by 2035, including 60 gigawatts of renewable energy generation capacity.
Furthermore, Lopez noted that this commitment transcends mere abstraction and affirms Türkiye’s eagerness to combat climate change.
He pointed out that Türkiye has prepared a pragmatic plan to help decarbonize, thereby tripling the country's renewable energy installed capacity over 12 years.
Highlighting the comprehensive nature of the program, including production, transmission and distribution, Lopez said that costs over 12 years would reach around $100 billion, comprising approximately $60-75 billion for production, $10 billion for transmission, and $8-10 billion for distribution.
He underscored that the country has devised a plan representing around 10% of the current gross domestic product (GDP), making it one of the largest programs for renewable installations in the developing world.
"As the World Bank, our area of focus will be the transmission part," he said, adding: "We have already started preparations for a new operation that could reach $750 million."
Lopez acknowledged the sensitivity and time-consuming nature of the electricity transmission operation, noting their collaboration with Türkiye and the country's robust plan.
He also conveyed that $10 billion of the plan would come from the public sector, and $90 billion would be obtained from private investments highlighting "the critical role" of collaboration with other multilateral development banks.
Commending Türkiye for its outstanding success in renewable energy, constituting 55% of the total installed capacity, Lopez expressed congratulations and welcomed Türkiye's decision to increase its renewable energy production capacity.