Türkiye’s plan to lift fixed energy investment to 538.3 billion Turkish liras in 2027 marks a significant expansion of its power, grid, storage and fuel infrastructure. More importantly for international investors, the government expects private companies to provide almost two-thirds of the capital. The program therefore represents more than a public spending commitment. It is a test of whether Türkiye can convert ambitious capacity targets into bankable projects while managing inflation, currency risk, grid constraints and an increasingly complex climate-regulation framework.
A Large Investment Program Led by Private Capital
The 2027 Presidential Annual Program projects energy-sector fixed investment of 538.3 billion liras, 29.7 percent above the estimated 414.9 billion liras for 2026, according to Hürriyet Daily News and Anadolu Agency. Of the total, 339.5 billion liras is expected from the private sector and 198.7 billion liras from public entities.
That allocation means private investors are being asked to supply approximately 63 percent of planned capital. Public investment, meanwhile, will concentrate partly on enabling infrastructure and strategic assets that the commercial market may not finance independently, including transmission lines, substations, gas storage and energy research.
The headline increase should be interpreted carefully. It is expressed in nominal liras at a time when inflation remains material. In its May 2026 Inflation Report briefing, the Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye forecast year-end inflation of 26 percent for 2026 and 15 percent for 2027. The 29.7 percent investment increase therefore overstates the likely expansion in real purchasing power, although the comparison between investment flows and year-end inflation rates is not exact.
For foreign investors, the more relevant signal is the composition of the program. Türkiye plans to expand installed electricity capacity from an expected 131,112 megawatts in 2026 to 140,047 megawatts in 2027. Solar capacity is projected to rise by 5,500 megawatts to 35,705 megawatts, while wind is expected to gain 2,000 megawatts and reach 18,010 megawatts.
Those additions indicate a sizable pipeline for developers, equipment suppliers, engineering companies, storage providers and project financiers. They also show that market-entry decisions cannot be based on the aggregate 538.3 billion-lira figure alone. Investors need to identify which part of the program is supported by an auction, regulated revenue, public procurement, merchant electricity sales or an industrial self-consumption model.
Renewable Auctions Meet the Grid Constraint
The annual program calls for Renewable Energy Resource Area, or YEKA, tenders covering 2,000 megawatts of solar and onshore wind capacity. It also envisages a 1,000-megawatt offshore wind tender, potentially opening a less mature but strategically important segment of Türkiye’s renewable market.
These awards form part of a much larger policy objective. Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said at the Türkiye Energy Transition Investment Forum in London in June 2026 that the country would require approximately $200 billion of energy-transition investment by 2035. The government is targeting 120 gigawatts of combined wind and solar capacity by that year, including 5 gigawatts of offshore wind.
The scale of that objective makes transmission capacity as important as generation permits. The 2027 program provides for completion of 12 transformer substations with combined capacity of 1,585 megavolt-amperes and 1,300 kilometres of transmission lines. Battery-storage capacity is expected to increase from 850 megawatts in 2026 to 2,350 megawatts in 2027.
International development finance is already being directed at this bottleneck. In August 2025, the World Bank approved a financing package consisting of a €625 million International Bank for Reconstruction and Development loan, a €32.8 million Clean Technology Fund loan and a $2 million grant for Türkiye’s transmission system. The project is designed to enable 1.7 gigawatts of renewable capacity while modernising substations, control systems and high-voltage infrastructure.
In June 2026, the World Bank approved another €400 million for distributed renewables and commercial battery storage through the Development and Investment Bank of Türkiye and the Industrial Development Bank of Türkiye. The institution expects the expanded program to support 1,579 megawatts of renewable capacity, 392 megawatt-hours of storage and as much as $405 million in private capital.
World Bank Türkiye Country Director Humberto Lopez described distributed wind and storage as the next critical step in preparing the grid for the energy transition. His assessment points to a central investment issue: a generation licence or attractive resource site has limited value without a viable connection schedule, appropriate storage configuration and enforceable route to market.
Nuclear Power, Gas and Supply Security Remain Central
Türkiye’s strategy is not confined to renewables. The annual program targets operation of the first 1,200-megawatt unit at the Akkuyu nuclear plant in 2027 and completion of construction work on the second unit. Energy Minister Bayraktar said at the Türkiye Energy Summit on October 27, 2026 that fuel loading was expected within weeks and that electricity would enter the system during 2027.
Akkuyu, being developed by Russia’s Rosatom under a build-own-operate structure, will contain four reactors with total capacity of 4.8 gigawatts. When complete, it is expected to supply about 10 percent of Türkiye’s electricity. The project also illustrates the schedule, financing, sanctions-screening, technology-transfer and government-relations risks associated with strategic energy infrastructure.
The government intends during 2027 to establish draft principles for negotiations with technology providers for proposed nuclear plants in Sinop and Thrace. It is also pursuing research involving small modular reactors, microreactors and fusion technologies. Bayraktar has set a longer-term objective of at least 20 gigawatts of nuclear capacity by 2050.
At the same time, Türkiye is increasing domestic hydrocarbon production and storage. The annual program calls for drilling 293 onshore and offshore oil and gas wells, collecting three-dimensional seismic data across 10,775 square kilometres and raising underground gas-storage capacity from 6.8 billion cubic metres in 2026 to 7.8 billion cubic metres in 2027. The additional 1 billion cubic metres is expected from the Tuz Gölü underground storage project.
This dual-track approach reflects an energy-security policy that combines decarbonisation with reduced dependence on imported fuels. It also creates opportunities outside electricity generation, including drilling services, specialised vessels, gas infrastructure, nuclear components, monitoring technology and industrial project management.
The FDI Opportunity Is Larger Than Current Energy Inflows
Türkiye attracted $13.1 billion in foreign direct investment in 2025, an increase of 12.2 percent from 2024, according to the Presidency’s Investment and Finance Office, citing central-bank data. Yet only about $250 million was classified as energy-sector FDI. By comparison, manufacturing received approximately $3.02 billion and wholesale and retail activities received $3.05 billion.
The gap between current energy inflows and the capital required by the 2035 roadmap suggests substantial potential, but it also shows that announced capacity does not automatically produce foreign investment. Projects must overcome Türkiye’s relatively high financing costs, limited availability of long-tenor domestic funding, exchange-rate exposure and uncertainty over future electricity prices.
A February 2026 agreement with Saudi Arabia demonstrated one possible model. According to Türkiye’s Investment and Finance Office, Saudi companies are expected to develop as much as 5,000 megawatts of renewable capacity, beginning with 2,000 megawatts of solar projects in Sivas and Karaman. The initial phase carries an estimated investment value of $2 billion and is expected to use external financing supported by international financial institutions. The projects also include a 50 percent localisation objective.
Such requirements can generate opportunities for local manufacturing and joint ventures, but they complicate procurement strategies for foreign sponsors. The European Commission’s 2025 Türkiye Report noted continuing concerns that local-content practices in renewable auctions could conflict with World Trade Organization rules and the EU-Türkiye Customs Union. Investors must therefore examine tender specifications, eligible equipment, domestic-production thresholds and potential trade exposure before finalising a consortium or supply chain.
Regulation and Execution Will Determine Returns
Türkiye’s first Climate Law, adopted in July 2025, established the legislative basis for an emissions trading system. The International Energy Agency reports that the system is intended to cover industry and power, with implementation from 2027. This coincides with the definitive phase of the European Union’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, which increases pressure on Turkish exporters in carbon-intensive sectors to document and reduce embedded emissions.
That alignment strengthens demand for corporate renewable procurement, rooftop generation, storage and verifiable low-carbon electricity. It also adds new compliance obligations. Investors may need to coordinate generation licences, environmental approvals, land rights, grid connection, carbon reporting, tax treatment and foreign-exchange arrangements across several agencies.
Project structure matters as much as technology. A foreign developer must decide whether to establish a wholly owned Turkish company, form a joint venture, acquire an operating asset or contract with an industrial consumer. Each route produces different consequences for licensing, withholding taxes, financing security, profit repatriation and access to investment incentives.
Site selection is similarly multidimensional. Resource quality must be weighed against connection capacity, zoning, agricultural or forestry restrictions, expropriation risk, logistics, earthquake exposure and municipal approvals. Offshore wind adds seabed surveys, port capability, maritime permissions and specialised import requirements. This is where market-entry analysis, company incorporation, legal and tax compliance, investment-incentive assessment, government relations, import-export facilitation and on-the-ground project management become interdependent rather than separate workstreams.
What This Means for Foreign Investors
Türkiye’s 538.3 billion-lira program creates a broad investment pipeline, but the most attractive opportunities will be those with a clear connection allocation, credible revenue model and financing structure that can absorb currency and inflation risk. Investors should distinguish government targets from awarded projects and test construction schedules against permitting, procurement and grid realities.
A practical entry process begins with mapping YEKA auctions, distributed-energy opportunities, storage rules, industrial power demand and public infrastructure procurement. It then requires an appropriate Turkish corporate structure, a review of national and regional incentives, tax modelling and early engagement with the Energy Market Regulatory Authority, the Energy Ministry, grid operators and relevant local administrations.
Equipment suppliers must assess localisation conditions, customs treatment, technical certification and after-sales obligations. Developers need land and environmental due diligence before committing capital. Sponsors pursuing nuclear, offshore wind, gas storage or transmission-linked projects will require sustained regulatory liaison and detailed project management because delays at one agency can affect the entire financing timetable. Trade-fair and expo representation can also provide an efficient route for technology providers seeking qualified Turkish partners before establishing a permanent presence.
Türkiye’s investment program is therefore best understood as an enabling framework rather than a guaranteed order book. Foreign companies that combine market-entry planning with incorporation, incentives, compliance, government relations, import-export preparation and local execution will be better placed to convert the country’s energy targets into investable projects during 2027 and beyond.