Most of Turkey’s offshore winds are found in floating territory, making commercial scale floating offshore wind an option worth holding out for if the country wants to develop its offshore wind potential in the most optimal way.

While the first Turkish offshore wind projects will be bottom-fixed, the country will quickly run out of feasible shallow sites and must move on to floating wind, according to Aegir Insights’ latest report covering emerging market around the Eastern Mediterranean, Black and Caspian Seas.

As floating wind is commercialized, it will quickly become the best bet for Turkey, and Aegir Insights forecasts cost levels down to around 90 Euros per MWh by 2030 for floating wind power in Turkish territory.

Political priorities propel Turkish offshore wind

Turkey’s best wind speeds of up to 9,5 m/s are found in the Aegean Sea. Apart from this area, economically viable wind speeds are found around Cyprus and in the Black Sea off the central part of the Turkish coastline as well as further to the East, close to Bulgarian territory.

Of the eight countries examined in Aegir Insights’ report, Turkey has the lowest technical potential, yet Aegir Insights expects the Turkish market to mature first due to the country having demonstrated its commitment to both land-based and offshore wind. Turkey tried setting up an auction for offshore wind already in 2018, and while that was cancelled, the country has since established a functional framework for land-based wind and solar project auctions.

Offshore wind could be export option for Turkey

A second enabling condition for the Turkish market is the presence of a strong domestic supply chain for land-based wind. Apart from supplying Turkey’s domestic wind build-out – which has been substantial as the country went from almost no wind power in 2005 to more than 9 GW installed by 2021 – the supply chain is also geared towards export with 75 % of the manufacturers already exporting their products. Supplying the offshore wind industry both domestically and in the region as a whole could bring jobs and further economic development to Turkey.

Constraints on offshore wind build-out in Turkey include an unstable financing climate and currency volatility, as well as a possible preference for building more land-based wind and solar power before going offshore.

Reach out to us to request Aegir Insights’ market report to learn more about the Turkish offshore wind market as well as other emerging offshore wind markets in the region.