How May New Energy Investments Change the Sustainability of the Turkish Industrial Sector?

Abstract

Utilization of renewable energy in the Turkish industrial sector is becoming more important nowadays. The tendency toward renewable energy can be clearly seen with newly planned energy investments. The energy appearance of the Turkish industrial sector for past two decades and ongoing energy projects are discussed in this study with the help of sustainability indicators. The sustainability index is based on advanced exergy analysis and shows the environmental impact of production processes and measures the transformation of energy resources in the Turkish industrial sector. This index was approximately 2.03 in 2000 and it improved to 2.25 in 2008, and then remained constant with minor fluctuations until 2019. Depending on the fulfillment of the continuing fossil, nuclear, and recommended renewable energy investment scenarios, the sustainability index may change to between 1.96 and 2.17 by 2023. None of the ongoing investments will make a major improvement in the sustainability of the industrial sector; therefore, a major shift toward the use of more renewable energy is urgently needed. Establishing solar or wind energy microgrids plants may improve the sustainability indicators drastically, therefore, encouragement of their investments is very important.