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Sustainable and balanced growth crucial for geothermal energy development

Sustainable and balanced growth crucial for geothermal energy development Kizildere geothermal power plant, Turkey
Parker O'Halloran 21 Jun 2017

A call for sustainable and balanced growth by industry representative Ali Kindap in rapidly expanding Turkish geothermal industry.

In a post on its website, Turkish energy firm Zorlu Energy has reported on a recent speech by its General Manager for Investments, Operations and Maintenance, Ali Kindap.

The speech, given during a panel on Geothermal Reservoir management as part of recent conference, reported on the rapid growth of Turkey’s geothermal energy sector.

“The current installed power [generation capacity] is at 860 MW and is expected to reach 1,500 MW after the realization of investments planned for 2020. In this fast growth, what is essential is to provide a sustainable and balanced growth.”

Having stated that geothermal energy plants can operate as base-load plants, Kindap added, “The fact that geothermal energy can be used as a base-load energy generation source makes it different than other renewable energy sources. 1,500MW of installed geothermal power is equal to 4,500MW of installed power in wind energy and 8,000-9,000MW in solar energy.”

Having emphasized that geothermal energy investments are long term investments, Kindap underlined the importance of private sector – university partnerships and said: “The major problem in the sector is experience in reservoir management. Failure in correct management has a negative impact on sustainability and thus efficiency. At Zorlu Energy, we attach great importance to partnerships with universities for scientifically based reservoir management and we are taking a leading role in this field. We established a partnership with one university in all the areas we operate. We will continue these partnerships also in our future investments for a balanced and sustainable growth.”

Providing 73% of the total installed power in Turkey from local and renewable energy sources, Zorlu Energy carries out all its geothermal energy investments with a vision of being a responsible investor. As the investor in three geothermal power plants, Zorlu is planning to increase its total installed power to more than 300 MW by commissioning the Kizildere III power plant, which will have 165MW of installed power, by the end of the year.

Source: In Geothermal Energy, What Is Essential Is Balanced and Sustainable Growth