A consortium of Hanwha Q Cells and Kalyon Enerji has secured the rights to develop the largest solar power project in Turkey.
According to media reports, consortium of the two companies secured 1,000 megawatts solar power project in the Karapınar region of Turkey at an impressive bid of 6.99¢/kWh. The project will also have a 500 megawatts solar equipment factory nearby. In October last year the Turkish government had announced plans to launch this tender.
The total project cost is expected to be $1.3 billion with work expected to begin in three months. The solar equipment factory is expected to be online in 21 months. Solar panels used in the project will be sourced from this factory itself.
The solar park is expected to cover 2,000 hectares of land and will generate 17 TWh electricity every year, enough to power 600,000 homes. The first phase of the project is expected to be commissioned in 2018.
The tariff quoted in the reverse auction shall be valid for a period of 15 years. Hanwha Q Cells-Kalyon Enerji had to compete with three other consortia; Limak – CMEC – Hareon Solar, Çalık Enerji – Solargiga, and AKC and Güneş.
Turkey has set a target to acquire 30% of all its electricity needs from renewable energy sources by 2023. The Turkish government is also looking to promoting other renewable energy technologies, with targets to set up 34 GW worth of hydro power, 5 GW worth of solar power, 1 GW worth of geothermal power, and 1 GW worth of biomass-based power capacity, all by 2023.