Turkey is Very Important for Energy Diversification plans of the European Union Says EU Minister

A senior official said that Turkey is very important for the energy diversification plans of the European Union as it holds the potential to export green hydrogen and renewable energy to the bloc in the future.

Frans Timmermans, European Commission Vice-President in charge of the European Green Deal said, “We want to create partnerships … to create a future hydrogen-based economy where we are not dependent on one or two single suppliers. Turkey, for all of this, is pivotal. It can only happen if Turkey is also at the center of this.”

The official said that countries like Turkey will start to generate energy from solar as well as wind in good amount and even more than it needs.

“Energy will also be exported from thereon. I think that energy storage is very important. Especially with hydrogen, this can be done much easier; hydrogen can be shipped to much further distances.”

“As the EU, we need much more than we will produce ourselves. Especially with the countries in the Mediterranean basin, we need to move to a hydrogen-based economy. At the same time, politically, we need to ensure political stability in the Mediterranean region. Turkey has always been important here,” he said.

Turkey’s Environment Urban Planning and Climate Change Minister Murat Kurum said the country has a good amount of hydrogen resources and also has the ability to meet the requirements of the EU countries.

The Minister added, “We have agreed that the technology here should be improved and the sharing of knowledge and experience should be increased. We will also do our work in this field together with the technical delegations. Turkey may be the green hydrogen source of Europe. At this point, we have expressed to them that we can carry out joint work with the European Union.”

The official concluded, “Building on Turkey’s 2053 net-zero commitment, it is now important to focus on the policies to get there. We agreed on the importance of EU-Turkey relations and the relevance of cooperation, also in the Mediterranean, on climate action and an accelerated energy transition.”