Turkey produced 442.2 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity from solar and wind between 2015 and 2025, according to data from the Energy and Natural Resources Ministry released on September 21.

In 2015, Turkey generated 11,847 gigawatt-hours (GWh) from solar and wind, displacing electricity that would have needed about $300 million in imported coal and avoiding roughly 9.5 million tonnes of CO2 , the ministry said. Generation grew steadily over the next decade.

The ministry noted that the 442.2 TWh from solar and wind between 2015 and 2025 would have required $21.5 billion in imported coal or $43.3 billion in imported natural gas.

If that electricity had come entirely from imported coal, about 354 million tonnes of CO2 would have been avoided; if from natural gas, the figure would have been around 177 million tonnes.

Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said Turkey is pushing to make the most of its renewable potential as part of its 2053 net-zero target and its goal of greater energy independence. He added that the country had also avoided tens of billions of dollars in fossil-fuel imports while growing its renewable sector.

Bayraktar said Turkey now ranks fifth in Europe and 11th globally in renewable energy by installed capacity and investment, and reaffirmed the goal of reaching 120 GW of renewable capacity by 2035.

As of this July, solar and wind made up 11.6% and 12.1% of Turkey's electricity generation, respectively. Solar's share climbed 28-fold from 0.4% in 2016, while wind rose from 5.7% to 12.1% over the same period.

Installed capacity also expanded notably. By the end of July, Turkey's total electricity capacity reached 126.48 GW. Solar accounted for 27.5 GW, or 21.7% of the total, and wind reached 15.358 GW, or 12.1%. Combined solar and wind capacity was 42,87 MW, making up 33.8% of the total.

Solar generation set a new monthly record in July after breaking one in June, totaling 5.37 billion kWh, the highest monthly level on record.