‘Türkiye faces no risk of widespread power outages’: Energy Minister

Türkiye’s Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar stated Thursday that the country faces no risk of widespread power outages similar to the recent disruptions seen in parts of Europe.

Following an inspection at the Central Anatolia Load Dispatch and Operations Directorate in Ankara, Bayraktar addressed concerns over recent power cuts affecting Spain, Portugal, and parts of France.

Bayraktar emphasized the resilience of Türkiye’s power grid, highlighting that the country has a substantial transmission infrastructure and a total installed electricity capacity of 118,000 megawatts.

“We manage a vast system with more than 75,000 kilometers (46,602 miles) of transmission lines and over 1.5 million kilometers of distribution networks. In terms of installed capacity and system operation, we have no issues with transformers, transmission lines, or distribution grids,” he said.

Renewable disruptions, cyberattacks eyed in blackouts

Bayraktar also pointed out that the cause of the incident in Europe remains unclear and may take time to determine, confirming that Türkiye is closely monitoring the situation.

Although the exact cause of the outages has not yet been identified, initial assessments suggest they were the result of system imbalances, he noted.

Addressing possible causes of the outages, Bayraktar mentioned that the presence of a high number of renewable energy plants may have played a role. “There are suggestions that the power cuts in Spain were due to the inability to manage a large share of intermittent renewable energy sources. While it is too early to draw conclusions, we must wait for the system operator’s analysis,” he said, adding that all potential causes, including cyberattacks, must be considered.

Bayraktar noted that Türkiye is integrated into the European transmission network, which consists of more than 40 operators. “Being part of a larger network is an advantage for Türkiye. It allows us to deliver more stable frequency services. This interconnectedness is something we should further enhance. We are currently working to expand this integration through Bulgaria and Greece,” he explained.

He also underlined Türkiye’s growing role as an energy exporter, including ongoing electricity exports to Syria.

Bayraktar concluded by announcing that the first edition of the Istanbul Natural Resources Summit will take place on Friday, describing it as a new milestone in Türkiye’s international energy diplomacy efforts.