8 international financial institutions signed a letter of support for Sivas and Taşeli Solar Power Plant

The signing ceremony, which was held within the scope of the 31st Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP31) hosted by Türkiye in Antalya, was accompanied by the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Alparslan Bayraktar and the Minister of Energy of Saudi Arabia Abdulaziz bin Selman Al Saud.

The letter of support was signed by representatives of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), German Investment and Development Bank (DEG), European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), International Finance Corporation (IFC), Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), Societe Generale and Standard Chartered.

Eight international organizations signed the letter and confirmed their support for the two projects, taking an important step towards regulating the financing of the power plants.

Sivas and Taşeli projects constitute the first phase of the 5 thousand megawatt renewable energy program agreed upon by Türkiye and Saudi Arabia. It is aimed to implement two solar power plants of 1000 megawatts each in 2029 with an investment of approximately 1.6 billion euros. The projects are expected to meet the electricity needs of 1.3 million households and prevent 1.65 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually.

It is anticipated that these investments will also contribute to Türkiye's 2053 net zero emission target.

Minister Bayraktar, in his statement to the press after the ceremony, said that 175 thousand megawatts of installed power in wind and solar is targeted by 2040.

Bayraktar stated that 8-9 thousand megawatts of new capacity should be put into operation every year for this target.

In this regard, Bayraktar pointed out that they declared a capacity of 2 thousand megawatts every year through Renewable Energy Resource Areas (YEKA) competitions, and said that they have implemented a capacity of 6 thousand megawatts in the last 2.5 years.

Bayraktar stated that new renewable investments will be made through intergovernmental agreements and that a total of 5 thousand megawatts of wind and solar energy projects will be developed in accordance with the agreement with the Saudi Arabian government.

Stating that a 2 thousand megawatt project will be implemented in the first stage, 1000 megawatts of which will be in Karaman and 1000 megawatts of which will be in Sivas, Bayraktar said, "The signed agreement was the financial agreement for the 2 thousand megawatt part of the total 5 thousand megawatt package. We have signed the financing agreement to realize this project together with 9 international organizations." he said.

Regarding the remaining 3 thousand megawatts of the total 5 thousand megawatts project package, Bayraktar said, "Part of the 3 thousand megawatts could be wind and part of it could be solar. We aim to add storage to this. For example, when you add the high voltage power lines that will carry electricity from Karaman to Istanbul or to the west, this means a package of 5-6 billion dollars." made his assessment.