British renewable energy company Hive Energy is seeking approval from the Turkish Market Regulatory Authority to approve its plans to develop 4 GW solar and energy storage projects in 30 locations across Turkey, in cooperation with local companies Çuhadar Energy and Viva Energy.
Hive Energy's Country General Manager for Turkey Tolga Metin revealed these plans to state-run news agency Anadolu Agency (AA). It is seeking clearance for projects ranging between 11 MW and 230 MW in Gaziantep, Kahramanmaraş, Osmaniye, Burdur, Niğde, Nevşehir, Karaman, Aksaray, Adıyaman, Şanlıurfa, Kayseri, Kırşehir, Malatya, Balıkesir, Elazığ, Konya, Eskişehir, Ankara and Yozgat.
The British company has planned more than 3 GW of this 4 GW proposed capacity with its project partners Çuhadar Energy, Viva 2 Energy, Viva 3 Energy, Viva 4 Energy, Viva 5 Energy and Viva 6 Energy. Backed by the British Chamber of Commerce (CCT), Hive expects to invest $4 billion on bringing these projects online.
It will also engage with international financiers once the projects qualify for pre-license stage.
This, however, is not Hive's maiden solar power project in Turkey. It entered the country in 2018 with 10 MW Adıyaman PV solar project for an investment of $11 million, financed by UK based investors.
Turkey's electricity mix remains dominated by fossil fuels as oil and gas with heavy dependency on imports. To overcome this, the country targets for security of energy supply as one of the pillars of its energy strategy. According to the International Energy Agency's (IEA) Turkey Energy Policy Review 2021, the country aims to commission 10 GW each of solar and wind energy capacity between 2021-27.
With the addition of 1.14 GW new solar in 2021, Turkey's cumulative installed solar PV capacity at the end of 2021 stood at 7.8 GW (see Turkey Installed 1.14 GW Solar In 2021).
In Sept. 2022, Hive was behind a green hydrogen plant proposed in Greece that received the status of country's 1st Flagship Investment of Exceptional Importance. The project, which will be built by Blue Sky 300 Energy that has been founded by Hive Energy, comprises 200 MW solar PV capacity and 100 MW energy storage to power a 50 MW electrolyzer to produce 16 tons green hydrogen a day (see 200 MW Solar Powered Green Hydrogen Project In Greece).