Turkey puts 28 new power plants into operation in Feb.

By Nuran Erkul

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey put 28 new power plants into operation in February with 316.7 megawatts of installed capacity from which 94 percent came from local resources, according to data of Turkey's Energy and Natural Resources Ministry on Monday.

Turkey's current installed electricity capacity reached 78,915 megawatts with the newly added capacity by the end of February 2017.

Wind power plants constituted 129 megawatts of the new capacity in 12 power plants in Kirklareli, Manisa, Afyonkarahisar, Balikesir, Izmir, Tekirdag, Kayseri and Istanbul.

Turkey put into operation 97.4 megawatts of hydro electricity in six power plants - Giresun, Rize, Zonguldak, Isparta, Duzce and Antalya.

Additionally, a 50-megawatt lignite plant started electricity production in Karabuk, a province in the north of the country.

Therefore, Turkey's domestic resources provided 298.5 megawatts of newly installed capacity.

Turkey put 18.2 megawatts of natural gas power plants into operation in Balikesir, Aydin, Kutahya and Kirklareli.

However, the new capacity in February decreased by 18.5 percent compared to the 389 megawatts in place during February last year.

Turkey has already begun a strategy to boost the country's domestic energy resources, including coal and renewables. The capacity of local resources in the total energy mix is expected to grow further.