Importance of Asphaltite Deposits in Southeastern Anatolia

Native energy sources of Turkey are quite limited, and the country is heavily dependent on the import of primary energy from abroad. The demand for electrical energy has increased very rapidly in Turkey due to the ongoing industrialization process and high population growth. Energy consumption in Turkey has continually increased over the past years and reached 82.2 million tons of oil equivalent (Mtoe) in 2000. This figure is expected to continue to grow and reach 115.2 Mtoe in 2005 and 153.9 Mtoe in 2010. In spite of the availability of all types of energy resources in Turkey, 66% of energy consumption is met with imports, as energy production is not sufficient to satisfy the demand for consumption. The primary energy sources of Turkey are hard coal, lignite, asphaltite, bituminous schist, hydropower, oil, natural gas, nuclear, geothermal, solar, wood, and animal and plant wastes. The required electrical energy of Turkey is primarily met from thermal and hydraulic sources, but, in addition to these, in recent times, asphaltite deposits in the Southeastern Anatolia Region of Turkey, roughly 79.969 million tons are found in the Sirnak and Silopi areas, and are mainly consumed in the residential sectors for heating due to its high calorific value (2876–5536 kcal/kg), are becoming important for Turkey to generate electricity energy. With the aim of this, it is planned to produce electrical energy after 2006 with the asphaltite taken out from Sirnak and Silopi region.     

Sectoral energy consumption in Turkey

Turkey expects a very large growth in energy demand, especially for electricity and natural gas. Today, Turkey’s energy production meets nearly 48% of the total primary energy demand. Total primary energy demand will reach 98 Mtoe in 2001 and 308 Mtoe in 2020. Import of primary energy will reach 226 Mtoe and production of primary energy will increase 81 Mtoe in 2020. As seen, Turkey is an importer country for primary energy. Turkey’s indigenous energy sources are limited, and the country is heavily dependent on the import of primary energy from abroad. The growth of Turkey’s industry is giving rise to a substantial increase in energy demand. In this paper, the primary energy production and sectoral consumption in Turkey is investigated. Further, a sectoral energy demand projection in Turkey is given until 2020.     

Wind energy status in electrical energy production of Turkey

Main electrical energy sources of Turkey are thermal (lignite, natural gas, coal, fuel oil, etc.) and hydraulic. Most of the thermal sources are derived from natural gas. Turkey imports natural gas; therefore, decreasing usage of natural gas is very important for both economical and environmental aspects. Because of disadvantages of fossil fuels, renewable energy sources are getting importance for sustainable energy development and environmental protection. Among the renewable sources, Turkey has very high wind energy potential. However the installed wind power capacity is only 0.22% of total economical wind potential. In this study, Turkey's installed electric power capacity, electric energy production is investigated and also Turkey current wind energy status is examined.     

Turkey's Renewable Energy Facilities in the Near Future

In this work, renewable energy facilities of Turkey were investigated. Electricity is mainly produced by thermal power plants, consuming coal, lignite, natural gas, fuel oil and geothermal energy, and hydro power plants in Turkey. Turkey has no large oil and gas reserves. The main indigenous energy resources are lignite, hydro and biomass. Turkey has to adopt new, long-term energy strategies to reduce the share of fossil fuels in primary energy consumption. For these reasons, the development and use of renewable energy sources and technologies are increasingly becoming vital for sustainable economic development of Turkey. The most significant developments in renewable production are observed hydropower and geothermal energy production. Renewable electricity facilities mainly include electricity from biomass, hydropower, geothermal, and wind and solar energy sources. Biomass cogeneration is a promising method for production bioelectricity.     

The Benefits of Renewables in Turkey

Renewable energy is proving to be commercially viable for a growing list of consumers and uses. Renewable energy technologies provide many benefits that go well beyond energy alone. More and more, renewable energies are contributing to the three pillars of sustainable development not only in IEA countries, but globally. Turkey is an energy-importing country; more than half of the energy requirement has been supplied by imports. Domestic oil and lignite reserves are limited and lignites are characterized by high ash, sulfur, and moisture content. In this regard, renewable energy resources appear to be one of the most efficient and effective solutions for sustainable energy development in Turkey. Turkey's geographical location has several advantages for the extensive use of most of these renewable energy sources. Because of this and the fact that it has limited fossil fuel resources, a gradual shift from fossil fuels to renewables seems to be serious and the sole alternative for Turkey. This article presents the role of the renewables in future directions in IEA countries with Turkey. At present the share of hydropower and biomass is high as 30% in the primary energy production of Turkey. In the case of solar, geothermal, and wind energy, there is an important potential for domestic heating and electricity generation.     

The contribution of renewable resources in meeting Turkey's energy-related challenges

The aim of this paper is to point out the importance of renewable energy as a key way for resolving the Turkey's energy-related challenges. As a consequence of economic and social development, Turkey's energy consumption has risen dramatically over the past three decades. At present, fossil fuels account for more than 90% of the total energy consumption in the country. Turkey has no large oil and natural gas reserves and it import nearly all of these fossil fuels. Turkey's current energy mix is not likely to support development of sustainable energy. The energy mix shows a relatively small contribution from renewable energy sources in the country. They have the potential to make a large contribution to Turkey's sustainable and independent energy future. In particular they can help to reach the environmental goals of Turkey and to increase the security of energy supply by reducing the dependence on imported-fuel supplies.     

Energy production and sustainable energy policies in Turkey

Turkey's demand for energy and electricity is increasing rapidly. Turkey is heavily dependent on expensive imported energy resources that place a big burden on the economy and air pollution is becoming a great environmental concern in the country. Turkey's energy production meets nearly 28% of its total primary energy consumption. As would be expected, the rapid expansion of energy production and consumption has brought with it a wide range of environmental issues at the local, regional and global levels. With respect to global environmental issues, Turkey's carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions have grown along with its energy consumption. States have played a leading role in protecting the environment by reducing emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs). In this regard, renewable energy resources appear to be the one of the most efficient and effective solutions for clean and sustainable energy development in Turkey. Turkey presently has considerable renewable energy sources. The most important renewable sources are hydropower, biomass, geothermal, solar and wind. Turkey's geographical location has several advantages for extensive use of most of these renewable energy sources. Turkey has a great and ever-intensifying need for power and water supplies and they also have the greatest remaining hydro potential. Hydropower and especially small hydropower are emphasized as Turkey's renewable energy sources. Turkey's hydro electric potential can meet 33–46% of its electric energy demand in 2020 and this potential may easily and economically be developed. This paper presents a review of the potential and utilization of the renewable energy sources in Turkey.     

Situation of Turkey's energy indicators among the EU member states

As a candidate country for EU accession, Turkey should make significant future plans about strategy of consumption and production of basic energy sources. The main goal of this study is determination of energy indicators situation for Turkey—to allow us to draw up a good energy policy for the future using the method of multiple variables data analysis. Basic energy and economic indicators, such as gross generation, installed capacity, net energy consumption per person, import, export, consumption of coal, lignite, fuel oil, natural gas and hydroelectricity are used in the analysis. Energy indicators used in the analysis are taken from the EUROSTAT and Turkish Statistical Institute (TURKSTAT). Results of analysis show that Turkey's most important goal for the future is to produce proper energy policies.     

Renewable and sustainable energy use in Turkey: a review

Turkey is an energy importing nation with more than half of our energy requirements met by imported fuels. Air pollution is becoming a significant environmental concern in the country. In this regard, renewable energy resources are becoming attractive for sustainable energy development and environmental pollution mitigation in Turkey. Turkey's geographical location has several advantages for extensive use of most of these renewable energy sources. Because of this and our limited fossil fuel resources, a gradual shift from fossil fuels to renewables seems to be a serious alternative for Turkey's energy future. This article presents a review of the present energy situation and assesses sustainability, technical, and economical potential of renewable energy sources, and future policies for the energy sector in Turkey. Throughout the paper, problems relating to renewable energy sources, environment, and sustainable development are discussed for both current and future energy investments. The renewable energy potential of the country and its present status are evaluated.     

Energy sector and wind energy potential in Turkey

Turkey has very limited indigenous energy resources and has to import around 65% of primary energy to meet her needs. It is a large importer of primary energy despite having ample renewable energy sources.Turkey’s vibrant economy has led to increased energy demand in recent years. This situation is expected to continue in the near future because its economy is dependent mainly on imported oil, natural gas and electricity.This paper presents the prevailing and the expected energy situation and energy demand. Wind energy potential in Turkey is also discussed.     

On the wind energy in Turkey

Increase in negative effects of fossil fuels on the environment has forced many countries, including Turkey, to use renewable energy sources. Today, clean, domestic and renewable energy is commonly accepted as the key for future life, not only for Turkey but also for the world. As wind energy is an alternative clean energy source compared to the fossil fuels that pollute the atmosphere, systems that convert wind energy to electricity have developed rapidly. Turkey is an energy importing country, more than half of the energy requirement has been supplied by imports. Turkey's domestic fossil fuel resources are extremely limited. In addition, Turkey's geographical location has several advantages for extensive use of wind power. In this context, renewable energy resources appear to be one of the most efficient and effective solutions for sustainable energy development and environmental pollution prevention in Turkey. Since wind energy will be used more and more in the future, its current potential, usage, and assessment in Turkey is the focus of the present study. The paper not only presents a review of the potential and utilization of the wind power in Turkey but also provides some guidelines for policy makers.     

The role of hydropower in meeting Turkey's electric energy demand

The inherent technical, economic and environmental benefits of hydroelectric power, make it an important contributor to the future world energy mix, particularly in the developing countries. These countries, such as Turkey, have a great and ever-intensifying need for power and water supplies and they also have the greatest remaining hydro potential. From the viewpoint of energy sources such as petroleum and natural gas, Turkey is not a rich country; but it has an abundant hydropower potential to be used for generation of electricity and must increase hydropower production in the near future. This paper deals with policies to meet the increasing electricity demand for Turkey. Hydropower and especially small hydropower are emphasized as Turkey's renewable energy sources. The results of two case studies, whose results were not taken into consideration in calculating Turkey's hydro electric potential, are presented. Turkey's small hydro power potential is found to be an important energy source, especially in the Eastern Black Sea Region. The results of a study in which Turkey's long-term demand has been predicted are also presented. According to the results of this paper, Turkey's hydro electric potential can meet 33–46% of its electric energy demand in 2020 and this potential may easily and economically be developed.     

A discussion on recent developments in Turkey's emerging solar power market

Market reform, energy security and environmental protection are three primary energy policy goals of Turkish government. Although Turkey's abundant solar energy resources can directly address the government's energy policy goals, Turkey has not utilized solar power yet. Utilization of country's huge solar energy potential would decrease dependence on imported fossil fuels and contribute to fulfill environmental commitments. However, lack of regulatory and financial support for the development of solar power has considerably delayed the utilization of country's huge solar potential. The government has taken only modest steps to promote investment in solar power until the end of 2010 when a new feed-in tariff policy was adapted. Turkey's solar energy potential, PV technology status and prospect for concentrating solar power in Turkey have been explored in a number of studies; yet literature dealing with recent policy developments, associated investment environment and opportunities for solar power investors are limited. The aim of this paper is to set out the latest legal framework for investment in Turkey's emerging solar power market and to provide some guidelines to potential investors who appreciated country's huge solar energy potential.     

Review of offshore energy in Malaysia and floating Spar platform for sustainable exploration

Rapidly rising trends of fuel consumption indicate enormous energy crisis of global proportions in near future. Following the trend, Malaysia's fuel consumption has been increasing by an annual rate of 7.2% since 1990 and has even reached 44.9 Mtoe in 2008. It is forecasted to reach 207.3 Mtoe by the year 2030. Due to serious depletion of reserves in various onshore locations, the exploration process is expanded to offshore deeper waters. Seven sedimentary basins belonging to Malaysia, in South China Sea, show great promise to be excellent sources of hydrocarbons. For deep-sea exploration fixed offshore structures are not feasible. An economical alternative is Spar platforms, which are floating structures ideal for exploration of deep water deposits. In this research, Malaysian experience in offshore hydrocarbon exploration is investigated. Various kinds of operational Spar platforms are censoriously explored and their recent technical developments are reviewed. The study reveals that Malaysia's primary energy requirements were met (in year 2008) with natural gas by 43.4% of the total, crude oil by 38.2%, coal by 15.3% and hydropower by 3.1%; indicating evidently that natural gas and crude oil are still the predominant energy sources. Out of the total energy, around 70% oil and 85% natural gas come from offshore fields. These large figures highlight the necessity to consider economically viable alternatives. Spar platform is an innovative marine structure designed to conduct such deep sea explorations. First commissioned Spar at Kikeh field of Malaysia is testimony to immense potential and possibilities of incorporating Spar platforms in the country's deep reserves for sustainable energy generation. Classic Spar, Truss Spar, Cell Spar and Cell–truss Spar are identified to be well suited for these environments. Since the offshore fields are located at waters with more than 1000 m depth, Spar platforms can be successfully installed at these Malaysian deep water fields.     

The lignite electricity‐generating sector in Greece: Current status and future prospects

Lignite plays an important role in Greece's energy sector as it satisfies over 70% of country's needs in electric power. The extraction of lignite takes place mainly in three regions of Greece, namely Ptolemais‐Amyndeon, Megalopolis and Florina. The annual production of lignite is around 60 million tons, out of which 48 million tons derive from the coal fields of northern Greece (Ptolemais‐Amyndeon and Florina). Almost the entire lignite production is consumed for electricity generation, while small amounts of lignite are used for briquettes and other applications. The Greek coal‐fired power plants, which are about 4500 MW, use conventional technology and they are old (an average of 30 years). In the coming years new coal fields will be exploited in Florina—another 2.5 million tons of coal—in order to satisfy the currently under construction 365 MW plant located at Meliti, Florina, Northern Greece. Even though the lignite reserves are widespread in Greece and other areas such as Elassona and Drama could possibly host power plants, it is expected that the Florina power plant will be the last coal‐fired plant to be build in the country. Lignite has to compete with natural gas—the construction of the main gas pipeline network has been completed—imported oil and renewable energy sources. The new EU regulations on power plant emissions raise obstacles for the firing of lignite, although it is low in sulphur. It must be shown that lignite produces low cost electricity in a environmentally friendly manner. The utilization of fly ash and land reclamation can improve the situation in lignite mining. In particular, specific attention was paid to further research and potential use of fly ash in road construction, the production of bricks and concrete, and the production of zeolites from lignitic fly ash. The use of clean coal technologies in power plants can solve many emission problems. Specific measures to increase the efficiency of lignite‐fired power units might include: identification of the loss sources of every unit, improvement of the cold end of the steam turbines, optimization of the beater wheel mills operation, and the combination of natural gas‐fired turbines with the existing boilers. The liberalization of the electricity market needs to be considered seriously from the lignite industry, since the potential electricity producers can freely choose from all kinds of fuels, such as imported coal, oil, gas and renewables. However, Greek lignite meets the requirements for the security of supply, as indicated in the EU's Green Paper. It needs only to be competitive in the new energy sector by improving mining and combustion conditions. Further research on these topics, through the European Commission's ECSC and Framework Programmes, as well as the national programmes, is required. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Potential of renewable energy in electrical energy production and sustainable energy development of Turkey: Performance and policies

Generating electricity, from renewable energy sources has become a high priority in the energy policy strategies at a national level as well as on a global scale. Although Turkey has many energy resources only coal and hydropower are significant at present, and as demand had risen, it has been necessary to import fuels to meet the total energy demand. The fossil resources, both indigenous and imported, have become expensive and also have undesirably high emissions. Turkey has an extensive shoreline and mountains and is rich in renewable energy potential. The share of renewables on total electricity generation is 35% while that of thermal power is 65% for the year 2010. Turkey is one of those countries that are considered rich and abundant in renewable energy resources.Turkey is facing serious challenges in satisfying its growing energy demand. To fuel a rapidly growing economy, the country’s electricity consumption is increasing by an average of 8–9% every year, and significant investments are needed in generation, transmission and distribution facilities to balance the power system’s supply and demand. With very limited oil and gas reserves, Turkey is increasingly turning to renewable energy sources as a means to improve its energy security and curb dependence on imported gas from Russia and Iran. This paper investigates the potential of renewable energy resources in Turkey at present and the magnitude of their present and future contributions to the national energy consumption. Energy politics are also considered.     

Lignite-fired thermal power plants and SO2 pollution in Turkey

About 80% of the electric energy production in Turkey is provided by thermal power plants which use fossil fuels. Lignite, the most abundant domestic energy source, is consumed in most of these plants. Turkey has approximately 0.85% of the world's lignite reserves; however, the Turkish lignites have low calorific value and contain relatively higher amounts of ash, moisture, and sulfur. Nearly 80% of the lignite mined in Turkey is consumed in the thermal power plants since it is not appropriate for use in other types of industry and heating. In Turkey, 13 large-scale lignite-fired thermal power plants are responsible for a considerable amount of air pollution. Therefore, it is crucial to decide on the optimal place and technology for the future thermal power plants, and to equip the currently operating plants with newer technologies that will reduce amount of contaminants released into the air.In this study, the effects of the lignite-fired thermal power plants which have an important place in the energy politics in Turkey on the air pollution are investigated. We focused on SO₂ pollution and the regions in which the SO₂ emissions were concentrated and diffused. The pollutant diffusion areas were projected and mapped based on parameters such as wind data, isotherm curves, population density, and topographic features by using Geographical Information System (GIS) software, ArcView. The contribution of the thermal power plants to SO₂ pollution was also examined.     

The contribution of hydropower in meeting electric energy needs: The case of Turkey

In this article, an attempt is made to better understand the contribution of hydropower in meeting electric energy needs of Turkey. Thus, a comparison between Turkey and other countries, which have some similarities with Turkey or which are more developed nations compared to Turkey, for evaluating from different aspects the contribution of hydropower in meeting electric energy needs is performed. The producers of electricity and hydroelectricity in the world, and the electric sectors of all the selected countries are firstly examined. Thereafter, Turkey's water resources and its potential, hydropower potential, and current status of hydropower in Turkey are investigated in detail. A detailed discussion regarding economic and energy indicators, hydroelectricity versus thermal electricity, the contributions of hydroelectricity to the total and renewable electricity generation, and the usage status of hydro potential of each selected nation is also made. Finally, it is found that hydropower is the second largest contributor in meeting Turkey's electric energy needs after thermal, mainly natural gas. It is also estimated that the contribution of hydropower will continue because a vast amount of its economically feasible hydro potential (about 64%) is undeveloped. Besides, it is determined that the contribution of hydropower in the total electricity generation in Turkey is greater than that of China and India, but it is lower than that of Norway, Brazil, and Canada.     

The role of hydroelectric power and contribution of small hydropower plants for sustainable development in Turkey

Turkey is a rapidly growing country regarding its economy and population and therefore has a large and continuously increasing energy demand. Turkey mostly meets its energy demand from imported fossil sources. However apart from petroleum and natural gas, Turkey has almost all kinds of energy resources and hence it would not need to meet its energy demand through import. In addition, Turkey has very large potential of hydraulic energy but to date only one-third of this significant economical potential could be used. This ratio seems insufficient when compared with that of European countries.In this paper the role of hydroelectric power, its potential and its present status are investigated in detail for Turkey. Especially the small scale hydropower plant is emphasized as Turkey's renewable energy source. Furthermore the water resources of Turkey are examined.     

A review on energy scenario and sustainable energy in Indonesia

The global energy consumption is likely to grow faster than the population growth. The fuel consumption was growing from 6630 million tons of oil equivalents (Mtoe) in 1980 to 11,163 Mtoe in 2009. This projected consumption will increase 1.5% per year until 2030 and reach 16,900 Mtoe and the main drivers of this growth are mostly developing countries in Asia. Indonesia is one of the developing countries and energy supply is an important factor for all-around development. The country's energy consumption still depends on non-renewable energy such as crude oil, coal and natural gas as sources of energy. Utilization of fossil fuel continuously contributes to huge amount of greenhouse gases emission that leads to climate change. Facing such an unfavorable situation, the government of Indonesia prioritizes on energy supply securities by diversification of energy resources. The energy mixes in Indonesia based on five main resources; these are crude oil, natural gas, coal, hydropower, and renewable energy. Although the country encourages utilizing renewable energy, the contribution is only around 3%. Considering natural condition and geography, this country is blessed with great potential of renewable energy such as solar energy, wind energy, micro hydro and biomass energy. Noting the potential of renewable and sustainable energy resources in the country, the government must pay more attention on how to utilize it. Many efforts have been done to promote renewable energy such as to create energy policy and regulations, yet it still did not give any satisfactory result. Government, non-government agencies and the public should take a more proactive step to promote and use renewable energy in order to achieve the secure and environmentally sustainable energy resources.