Turkey has doubled its solar energy capacity in just two and a half years, surpassing its 2025 target more than a year ahead of schedule, according to a new report by Ember, an independent UK think tank that focuses on energy-related issues.

The nation's solar capacity jumped from 9.7 GW in mid-2022 to 19.6 GW by the end of 2024, driven primarily by self-consumption installations, which accounted for 94% of the growth.

The rapid expansion marks a sharp acceleration in deployment. While the previous doubling took over four years, the latest surge occurred in half that time, said London-based Ember.

The shift to renewables has also improved Turkey’s energy security. Ember said that solar and wind power likely helped the country avoid $15 billion in natural gas imports over the past two years, with solar alone displacing $5.4 billion worth of natural gas.

In 2024, solar generation provided 6% of Turkey’s electricity supply, reducing reliance on fossil fuels, noted the company.

It also highlighted the nation's potential for further expansion, pointing to rooftop PV, floating solar, hybrid, and storage-integrated solar projects as key growth drivers.

Turkey has already pre-licensed 33 GW of storage-integrated solar and wind projects, far exceeding its official 2030 target of 2.1 GW, said Ember.

With the 2025 solar target already met, Ember argued that Turkey could set more ambitious renewable energy goals in its next Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris agreement on climate change. This would be aligned with the country's long-term climate strategy, strengthening its role in the global clean energy transition, claimed the think tank.

In November 2024, Turkey’s Ministry of Energy launched a tender for 800 MW of solar across six projects, with a deadline for bids set for January 27, 2025. The projects span multiple regions, with an initial ceiling price of $0.055/kWh.

In December 2024, researchers from Turkey’s Final International University developed a self-powering greenhouse using a hybrid energy system that combines semi-transparent PV, battery storage, and hydrogen. The system was optimized for maximum financial viability and minimal grid dependency.

And earlier this month, Polat Energy and Rolls-Royce partnered on Turkey’s largest battery energy storage project, a 132 MWh system located alongside an operating wind farm.