Within the scope of the 19th Türkiye Investment Conference organized by the Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEİK) Türkiye-US Business Council (TAİK), the Energy Round Table Meeting was held.
In his speech here, Bayraktar stated that conditions in terms of energy security in the world and especially in the region are becoming increasingly difficult.
Emphasizing that recent developments have increased concerns about energy prices and supply security, Bayraktar stated that the Covid-19 epidemic, the Russia-Ukraine War, supply chain problems, trade wars, tightening in financial markets and regional conflicts have occurred consecutively since 2020.
Bayraktar mentioned that Türkiye's energy strategy is based on three main headings and listed them as "demand, dependency and decarbonization".
Stating that the energy demand in Türkiye is constantly increasing, Bayraktar noted that this shows that the country is a growing and investable market.
Bayraktar stated that the increase in energy demand is due to traditional factors such as population, urbanization, economic growth and industrialization, as well as new factors such as artificial intelligence-focused data centers, electric mobility, cooling and, in the future, water purification and desalination facilities.
Pointing out that Türkiye's dependence on energy imports is one of the main problems, Bayraktar said that the country pays approximately 70-80 billion dollars for energy imports every year.
Bayraktar stated that reducing this dependence is one of the main goals of Türkiye's energy policies.
Regarding decarbonization, Bayraktar noted that Türkiye continues its energy transformation in line with its carbon neutral economy target in 2053.
"WE WILL ANNOUNCE IT IN OCTOBER OR NOVEMBER"
Bayraktar said that they prepared Türkiye's energy agenda for 2040 and called this work "New Energy Architecture for Türkiye" or "Vision 2040".
Stating that the program in question is planned to be announced in late October or early November this year, before the 31st Conference of the Parties (COP31) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Bayraktar stated that they will comprehensively present Türkiye's plans in the field of energy.
Underlining that electrification is the basis of the 2040 vision, Bayraktar said, "In other words, we will electrify Türkiye. We will electrify the Turkish economy, from buildings to industry, from transportation to agriculture and manufacturing, and electrify the country." he said.
Noting that the vision in question will consist of five basic policy areas, Bayraktar listed these as renewable energy, energy efficiency, nuclear energy, oil and natural gas and mines.
"MORE RENEWABLE ENERGY MAY BE SEEN IN Türkiye"
Bayraktar stated that Türkiye has significant potential, especially in solar and wind energy, and that the existing hydroelectric potential is largely used and that it is aimed to commission more capacity in solar and wind energy.
Stating that more renewable energy capacity can be commissioned in Türkiye, Bayraktar said, "There is an increasing interest of both domestic and foreign investors in entering this market." he said.
Bayraktar emphasized that energy efficiency carries an important potential for the entire economy and said that they aim to invest approximately 20 billion dollars and reduce primary energy consumption by 15 percent within the scope of the 2024-2030 National Energy Efficiency Action Plan.
Pointing out the importance of nuclear energy in terms of decarbonization targets, Bayraktar noted that Türkiye evaluates investment and cooperation opportunities in the field of small modular reactors (SMR) as well as large-scale nuclear power plants.
Bayraktar underlined that oil and natural gas will maintain their importance in the energy transformation process and stated that Türkiye will continue its exploration and production activities in this field, as well as pipeline and other infrastructure investments.
Explaining that mines are one of the basic elements of energy transformation, Bayraktar said that more electricity grid, connection and infrastructure investments are required for energy transformation, which will increase the demand for copper, critical minerals and rare earth elements.
"PREDICTABILITY IS IMPORTANT IN ENERGY MARKETS"
Bayraktar stated that digitalization, infrastructure and regional connections also stand out as horizontal policy areas in the 2040 vision.
Stating that an investment of at least 30 billion dollars is required until 2035 to strengthen the electricity transmission network and at least 50 billion dollars for the distribution network, Bayraktar said that infrastructures such as natural gas storage facilities, regasification terminals, pipelines and compressor stations are also planned to be developed.
Bayraktar pointed out the importance of Türkiye establishing more connections with neighboring countries in the fields of natural gas, electricity and oil, and noted that regional connections are critical in terms of energy security and diversification.
Emphasizing that predictability in energy markets is important in attracting capital, Bayraktar said that the total investments planned to be made in the energy and mining sectors by 2040 could exceed 300 billion dollars.
Bayraktar stated that Türkiye attaches importance to diversifying its energy supply and that oil, natural gas pipelines and other energy infrastructure projects are evaluated within this framework.
Emphasizing that international cooperation is important in realizing these investments, Bayraktar said that there is a significant cooperation potential between Türkiye and the USA in the field of energy.
RESTRUCTURING GOAL IN PUBLIC COMPANIES
Bayraktar stated that they are working on the restructuring and reformation of Turkish Petroleum, Eti Maden, BOTAŞ, Electricity Production Inc. (EÜAŞ) and Turkish Electricity Transmission Inc. (TEİAŞ).
Stating that they aim for these companies to become stronger "national champions" and operate more actively outside Türkiye, Bayraktar said that international partnerships and different financing instruments will be evaluated in this context.
Stating that Turkish Petroleum has produced the equivalent of approximately 300 thousand barrels of oil and natural gas today, Bayraktar noted that this figure is expected to reach 550 thousand barrels in 2028 with the contribution of the Sakarya Gas Field to production.
Bayraktar stated that their goal is to turn Turkish Petroleum into a company with a daily production capacity of 1 million barrels in 2035 and to fully meet Türkiye's oil and natural gas demand in 2040.
Stating that they aim to restructure EÜAŞ to make more effective use of its existing renewable energy capacity and to create one of the largest renewable energy companies in Europe, Bayraktar stated that they want the companies to develop partnerships with the private sector abroad.
Bayraktar added that Türkiye is open to developing partnerships with local and foreign private companies in mining and energy projects in Central Asia, Africa and the Middle East.
"ELECTRICITY NEED WILL INCREASE"
Answering the questions of business representatives and investors from different sectors attending the meeting, Bayraktar said that approximately 16-17 million new vehicles are expected to be on the road in Türkiye by 2040, and that approximately 13 million of them are expected to be electric and 3-4 million to be hybrid vehicles.
Stating that this transformation will reduce the demand for petroleum products but increase the need for electricity, Bayraktar said, "Therefore, we need natural gas cycle power plants, renewable energy, large-scale nuclear and SMRs." he said.
Bayraktar emphasized that nuclear energy is of critical importance in achieving Türkiye's carbon neutral targets and stated that nuclear capacity should be increased due to increasing electricity demand.
Stating that they plan to submit the legal regulation regarding SMRs to the Turkish Grand National Assembly in the coming months, Bayraktar said, "We will have a stronger legal infrastructure for the implementation of small modular reactors in 2027." he said.
Bayraktar also noted that they will introduce incentives and various exemptions in order to attract investments in the SMR field.
Regarding critical minerals, Bayraktar explained that Türkiye's strategy in this field is parallel to the goal of reducing foreign dependency on energy resources.
Stating that the energy and mining cooperation between Turkey and the USA could be concentrated in four main areas in the coming period, Bayraktar listed these as nuclear energy, LNG and natural gas, critical minerals and energy infrastructure.
"ENERGY CONVERSION IS IMPORTANT FOR SECURITY"
TAIK President Murat Özyeğin also said that Türkiye's energy transformation is important not only for the country but also for energy security around the world.
Özyeğin stated that the developments in the region, and especially the disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz, show how quickly geopolitical crises can turn into energy crises, and energy crises into economic crises, and explained that energy security does not mean trying to produce all energy resources within the country.
Özyeğin stated that in this context, there is a need for stronger transmission infrastructure, higher storage capacity, smarter and digitalized networks, energy efficiency and greater connection with the energy markets of surrounding countries.
