Saudi-Turkish Memorandum Targets 3,000 Megawatts of Wind Power in Turkey
Key Facts
Turkish Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar and Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman signed a memorandum of understanding to cooperate on electricity projects on the sidelines of the COP31 summit in Antalya on 10 November 2026. The signing ceremony was attended by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, according to Turkey’s Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources. The memorandum advances work on the second phase of a renewable energy program being developed by ACWA Power in Turkey. This phase targets the addition of 3,000 megawatts of wind power. It represents part of a broader framework for projects with total capacity of 5,000 megawatts across two phases.
The announced vision for the wind projects includes power plants supported by high-voltage direct-current transmission infrastructure and battery energy storage systems, according to the Turkish ministry. The design places transmission infrastructure and storage within the projects’ development plan, alongside wind farms. The ministry has not announced a financial value for the memorandum of understanding or the second phase. It described the signed document as a memorandum for cooperation on electricity projects, while the announced figures concern planned generation capacity. The ministry did not give an implementation timetable or a date for the wind projects to begin operations.
The government framework for the program dates to an agreement signed in Riyadh on 3 February 2026, which entered into force on 21 October of the same year, according to the Turkish ministry. The framework provides for ACWA Power to develop renewable projects with total capacity of 5,000 megawatts in Turkey in two phases. The first phase includes solar projects in the provinces of Sivas and Karaman, with total capacity of 2,000 megawatts. Bayraktar said work on these projects had made progress, describing them as the first phase of the program. The second phase targets 3,000 megawatts of wind power, according to the announcement issued on 10 November.
The first-phase solar projects are divided between two plants, each with capacity of 1,000 megawatts, according to Turkish Electricity Generation Corporation EÜAŞ. The company and ACWA Power signed investment and power purchase agreements for the two plants on 20 February 2026. Their combined capacity is 2,000 megawatts, with one located in Sivas and the other in the Taşlıca area of Karaman. This capacity is consistent with the figure the ministry gave for the program’s first phase. The announced framework therefore combines 2,000 megawatts of solar power with a targeted 3,000 megawatts of wind power.
The proposed expansion comes as fossil fuels account for a large share of Turkey’s electricity generation. Coal made up 33.3% of generation during 2025, compared with 10.8% for wind and 11.9% for solar, according to Turkish Energy Ministry data. Installed capacity totaled 127,355 megawatts at the end of September 2026. Wind accounted for 12.2% of that capacity and solar for 22.2%, the ministry said. These figures provide context for the planned program’s scale within Turkey’s electricity mix.
In the market, ACWA Power shares listed in Saudi Arabia closed at 165.7 riyals on 10 November 2026, according to EL7 data. The shares had closed at 161.9 riyals in the previous session, on 9 November. Available data do not include a share price for 11 November or the session’s high. In the context of the COP31 summit, Turkey said its climate plan focuses on turning existing pledges into practical implementation. By contrast, a climate activist said the plans did not include a path to phase out coal or other fossil fuels.