Turkey is expanding renewable energy and domestic fossil-fuel production while deepening Saudi investment ties and positioning itself as a major energy hub between the Middle East and Europe.
Turkey and Saudi Arabia have finalized an accord to construct an additional 3 gigawatts (GW) of green energy generation within Turkey, expanding the total envisioned joint pipeline to 5 GW, according to statements made in August by Turkish Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar. The deal builds upon a $2 billion commitment announced in February, following discussions between Bayraktar and Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman, which allocated funding for two solar facilities totaling 2 GW across Sivas and Karaman provinces. Fully funded by foreign sources and international financial lenders, the two facilities are designed to power approximately 2.1 million residences once completed.
The bilateral partnership comes as Turkey aggressively scales up domestic generation capacity to achieve energy independence and serve as a transit corridor linking Middle Eastern energy supplies with European markets. Under the administration of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey's overall generation capacity expanded from 32,000 megawatts to 126,000 megawatts through the addition of roughly 95 GW of new resources over a 24-year timeframe. This expansion places the country third in Europe for installed power potential and usage, trailing only France and Germany.
Alongside clean energy developments, Turkey has expanded domestic hydrocarbon output. Crude oil extraction has tripled, natural gas production has increased ninefold, and mineral exports have grown by a factor of ten. Black Sea offshore gas reserves are targeted to double output during 2026 before quadrupling by 2028. Bayraktar noted that regional instability in the Middle East offers Turkey an opportunity to solidify alternative trade channels and improve regional supply security.
In July, the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources initiated procurement tenders for 2.4 GW of clean energy, comprising 900 megawatts of photovoltaic developments spanned across nine provinces and 1.5 GW allocated to seven wind installations centered largely between Istanbul, Izmir, and Sivas. Bidding submissions for the 2026 auction phase close on Oct. 13. Bayraktar confirmed the nation intends to auction at least 2 GW of combined solar and wind capacity annually to meet its combined 120 GW renewables target ahead of its original 2035 deadline, anticipating solar will emerge as the primary domestic power source by the close of the year.
Turkey aims to source 47% of its total power generation from clean resources by 2030, supported by continuous growth in photovoltaic generation, which doubled between 2023 and 2025 to represent 10.5% of total supply. Hydroelectric facilities remain the primary renewable source, supplying roughly 17% of total power in 2025, alongside wind and solar which collectively constitute around 22% of total supply across an operational footprint of 42 GW. Despite these gains and a temporary cap on rising utility emissions driven by industrial power demand over the past two decades, coal remains Turkey's largest single source of electricity at 34%, with roughly two-thirds of the required fuel imported from foreign suppliers.
Originally reported by oilprice.com on Aug 30, 2026.
