Citing recent power outages in Europe, Türkiye’s deputy energy and natural resources minister said that the country’s electricity system is designed to ensure sustainability when intermittent energy sources fall short.
“The stronger the baseload power plants are within a systematic structure, the more resilient the overall system becomes, and currently, our system is quite robust in this regard,” Nevzat Satiroglu told Anadolu on the sidelines of a clean coal technologies event in Istanbul.
“Intermittent energy sources like solar and wind plants occasionally go offline and halt electricity production, so we need coal to meet demand, and if coal isn’t sufficient, we turn to gas or nuclear,” he explained.
On Monday, the Iberian Peninsula suffered its worst blackout in modern history shortly after midday, with nearly all of mainland Spain and Portugal without power.
By midnight, just 61% of the power demand in Spain had been restored. By Tuesday morning, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced that 99.95% of the country’s electricity supply had been recovered.
While the government launched multiple investigations into the blackout, industry experts warn that the mass outage reveals escalating pressure on Spain's power grid due to the rapid integration of renewable energy.
Noting that energy security is not only about production but also about continuity and resource diversity, Satiroglu said: “We support our grid both with domestic and environmentally friendly sources.”
“While expanding renewable sources such as solar and wind, we also rely on steady supplies like coal and natural gas to keep the system balanced,” he said.
Satiroglu added that technological advancements have accelerated alongside the growth of natural gas and renewable energy, and that coal has likewise become usable through much cleaner, safer, and more environmentally friendly systems.
“As the Ministry, we are encouraging the private sector and commissioning systems capable of burning our coal in an environmentally responsible way," he said.
"We are working to improve the emission performance of existing power plants to keep them operational and to boost their efficiency,” he added.
Speaking about Türkiye's roadmap for energy supply security, Satiroglu highlighted that domestic production and environmental sensitivity are at the forefront of energy investments.
Satiroglu concluded by reaffirming Türkiye’s commitment to reducing external dependence and enhancing supply security through the National Energy and Mining Policy.
“By strengthening our energy infrastructure, we aim to provide uninterrupted energy even in times of crisis,” he added.
By Firdevs Yuksel and Handan Kazanci
Anadolu Agency
energy@aa.com.tr