A solar farm with more than three million panels in central Türkiye highlights the country’s renewable energy expansion, but coal remains its largest source of electricity as it prepares to host the COP31 climate summit.
The Kalyon Karapınar YEKA-1 plant, in Konya province, has operated since 2023. Its director, Burak Dogru, said it generates enough electricity to cover about 0.7% of Türkiye’s annual demand and prevents roughly 1.75 million metric tons of carbon emissions each year.
Those gains have not displaced coal. Türkiye’s Energy Ministry says coal provided 33% of electricity generation in 2025, while solar and wind together accounted for nearly 23%, figures cited in an Associated Press report.
Climate plans face scrutiny before COP31
Climate advocates say Türkiye has set out plans to expand renewable power without a clear timetable for ending coal use or phasing out other fossil fuels, including gas. Duygu Kutluay of the Beyond Fossil Fuels group said that gap conflicts with the country’s pledge to reach net-zero emissions by 2053.
The COP31 meeting is scheduled for November 9-20 in Antalya. Environment and Climate Change Minister Murat Kurum has said Türkiye wants the summit to focus on putting existing climate commitments into practice. The government plans to promote a “climate implementation bridge” intended to connect countries with financing, technology and other support.
Türkiye is also pursuing nuclear energy. Its first nuclear power plant is under construction on the Mediterranean coast, while additional reactors remain under consideration.
Climate Action Tracker has rated Türkiye’s targets and policies “critically insufficient” against the goals of the Paris Agreement. The country’s emissions reached 584.5 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2024, the latest year cited in the supplied data.
The summit takes place amid criticism of Türkiye’s continued coal reliance and reported plans to expand a power plant in Çanakkale. Separately, a court annulled an environmental impact assessment for a proposed expansion of the Afşin-Elbistan coal plant earlier this year.
Clayton Ward 
Nicole French