Floating solar catches have huge potential: Official

Floating solar panels have the potential to give a huge boost to Türkiye's installed electricity capacity, according to a top official from the Energy and Natural Resources Ministry.

The parliament's Industry and Technology Commission passed a bill that paves the way for establishing floating photovoltaics (FPV) on lakes as well as the country's seas, except for reservoirs used for drinking water and seashores.

Even if only 3 percent of those areas are utilized for establishing floating solar panels, this will create an additional 55,000 megawatts of potential, Deputy Energy Minister Nevzat Şatıroğlu told members of the commission, reminding that this corresponds to half of Türkiye's current total installed capacity.

A zoning plan will not be required for the floating solar power plants.

"This is not something completely new. The energy sector and the ministry have been discussing this issue for years. We have the potential to create 55,000 megawatts of capacity on water resources even if we use a fraction of them," Şatıroğlu said.

Those projects could be implemented only after the environmental impact reports and permission from the General Directorate of State Hydraulic Works (DSİ) are obtained, he added. "Those solar catches do not require drilling. So, there is no need for putting forward zoning plans for those projects."

Solar power provided 5.7 percent of the electricity produced in Türkiye last year when the country consumed 326.3 TWh of power, down 0.6 percent from 2022.

The country's total installed capacity reached 106,668 MW at the end of 2023 and solar power accounted for 10.6 percent of this capacity.