Turkey's Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Alparslan Bayraktar, stated that Turkey aimed to use all energy sources to ensure energy security and reduce import dependency. He mentioned, "We are successfully continuing the reform process we started 25 years ago to make fundamental changes in the energy market. As a result, we have managed to attract approximately 100 billion dollars in foreign direct investment to the energy sector."
Speaking at the Pakistan Mining Investment Forum, Bayraktar discussed the reforms Turkey had implemented in its energy and mining policies, noting "We are successfully continuing the reform process we started 25 years ago to make fundamental changes in the energy market. This has enabled us to attract about 100 billion dollars in foreign direct investment to the energy sector."
"100 Billion Dollars in Imports"
Bayraktar highlighted two major challenges that Turkey’s energy and mining sectors faced. He stated, "Firstly, unfortunately, we are heavily dependent on imported sources, which makes Turkey quite vulnerable from a macroeconomic perspective. In 2022, we spent approximately 100 billion dollars on imports of energy sources such as metals, oil, natural gas, coal, and minerals. We pay this amount every year to import these resources."
Bayraktar then addressed energy security issues, saying, "To secure supply and reduce our dependency on imports, our goal is to fully utilize energy sources such as renewable energy, coal, and minerals. We want to make full use of our potential."
Bayraktar pointed out that Turkey had one of the richest varieties of mineral resources and mentioned that it had developed a comprehensive plan and strategy to utilize these resources, aiming to integrate them with the industry.
"We Focus on Producing Wind Turbines and Photovoltaic Panels" Bayraktar emphasized that they were focusing on the entire value chain, stating, "For example, in the renewable energy sector, we are not only focused on producing electricity from solar and wind, but we are also focused on producing wind turbines and photovoltaic panels."
He stressed the importance of environmentally friendly projects to attract foreign investors to the mining sector and highlighted the significance of health and safety in this area.
Bayraktar concluded by saying that they were working on a reform package to attract capital to the mining sector in Turkey and simplify licensing procedures.
