Turkey’s got some renewable energy projects brewing see our recent article on renewable energy prospects for Turkey. Competing with oil from the Middle East, it now appears that the Turkish government has decided to favor more projects dealing with wind and other renewable energy programs. In an abstract for an article in the Turkish Digest called “On Wind Energy in Turkey,” the article had some positive points in favor of wind.

“As wind energy is an alternative clean energy source compared to the fossil fuels that pollute the atmosphere, systems that convert wind energy to electricity have developed rapidly.”

No surprise to us.

Turkey’s developing interest in wind energy was aided considerably by an energy efficiency law that was passed by the Turkish government in 2007, that allows 10 years of electricity generation by renewable sources as guaranteed by the Turkish government. With the passage of this law, installed wind power has risen to 131.35 MW in Turkey and it is expected that this value was to be expected be increased to 808.81 MW by the end of 2008.

As in other countries still importing fossil fuels for a large part of their energy needs including, the success of renewable energy projects depend a lot on the assistance these projects receive from governmental authorities as well as outside assistance from financial institutions such as the World Bank.

Turkey received this assistance in May 2009, when the Bank announced it is investing $600 million in developing renewable sources such as biomass, hydro, wind and geothermal. Funding is being channeled through banks, which will loan cash to private entrepreneurs to give the market a boost. Not all of this aid will go to wind energy projects, but will be divided up among the mentioned renewable energy sources.

Still, wind energy is considered by many to be one of the cleanest renewable sources around, and despite the special equipment needed to install the massive propeller shaped wind turbines, many of which are as large as a 747 passenger airliner, it appears that more wind energy projects will be seen all over Turkey.

Of course, the Turks might consider installing more innovative vertical turbines, such as ones currently being developed by an Israeli company, Coriolis Wind, which are able to produce electricity from a much lower “wind cut-in speed” by taking advantage of natural forces such as the Coriolis Effect.

Whatever types of wind turbines and related equipment will be utilized in Turkish wind farms, it appears that this form of energy will be used more in the future to power the country’s growing energy needs. And maybe the use of wind power will put Turkey in the good books of the EU bloc, of which Turkey has been pining to join.