Tariff And The Non-Tariff Based Renewable Energy Incentives In Turkey

Turkey is one of the fastest growing economies among the emerging markets. Its 4% average growth rate throughout the last decade catapulted her in to a class of its own among the MENA region. However the rapid industrial development and economic growth have increasingly been putting forward an expensive energy bill before the country. Energy related costs are estimated to account for half of the current account deficit of Turkey which stands around USD$ 52 billion. Moreover dependency on foreign energy resources serves as a problem for Turkey as its neighbors might find themselves in a situation not able to fullfil their commitments to Turkey either due to their own domestic shortages or political crisis. In order to reduce the energy bill and to decrease the foreign energy dependency, the Turkish authorities have started to take steps to transform the energy landscape of Turkey from a fossil fuel based one in to a one based on renewable energy.