The solar sector in Türkiye continues to grow rapidly, with almost 2 GW of new capacity in the first four months of the year. While momentum for implementation remains strong, the market appears to be transitioning from a rapid boom to a more structured and policy-making phase.
Speak with pv magazine At the Smarter E event in Munich, Germany, Mehmet İzzet Özaydın, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Turkish PV Association Günder, said the market is mainly driven by private sector demand for cost reduction and energy security through unlicensed solar power plants, with solar energy increasingly seen as a key industrial asset rather than a discretionary investment.
“Businesses see solar energy as a way to permanently reduce operating costs and stay competitive,” he said.
Policy shift towards domestic production
Recent regulatory changes have placed a stronger emphasis on local production content, Özaydın explained, especially requirements related to solar panels produced with domestically produced cells. He explained that this shift is reshaping investment decisions and in some cases slowing some project pipelines as developers reassess the economics under the new rules, as domestic cell production is not yet benefiting from efficiencies on a global scale.
Macroeconomic conditions add even more complexity. With commercial lending rates hovering around 40%, many companies are weighing solar investments against the high short-term returns available through the financial markets. “Tight credit conditions also limit access to financing for some commercial projects,” Özaydın noted.
New business models
To address both financing barriers and network limitations, Özaydın suggested that industry stakeholders look at alternative deployment models, including fully behind-the-meter systems and concession-based development structures.
One proposed approach involves regional concession tenders, which would grant licensed developers rights to install and operate solar energy systems in defined geographic areas. “Under this model, developers would finance solar installations on the roof of commercial buildings on a large scale, with guest customers receiving electricity discounts and ownership being transferred after a certain period,” Özaydın explains. pv magazine.
An important feature of the concept is the elimination of feeding back into the grid. Systems would be designed as fully self-consumption assets, and ultimately combined with battery storage to manage load balancing and avoid export restrictions.
“The idea is to stop treating the power grid as the limiting factor,” Özaydın said. “Instead, systems would operate entirely behind the meter, with storage providing flexibility and resilience.”
The outlook remains strong
Despite the tighter financial conditions, Türkiye is expected to continue to deploy high levels of solar energy, although Özaydın warned that installations could be more moderate in the second half of the year.
“Banks have become incredibly cautious,” he added. “They conduct intensive research and are very reluctant to offer credit unless a customer is completely bulletproof. Because companies need to maintain their liquid capital for primary activities rather than self-financing solar energy, we see a bottleneck.”
Full-year additions are expected to be between 4 and 6 GW, supported by continued strong private sector demand and the scalability of commercial and industrial solar projects.
