Gov’t determined on nuclear energy plants amidst protests
Posted by meb at January 19th, 2008
Despite toughening opposition to domestic nuclear energy plans, the government has expressed determination in proceeding with the project.
Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Hilmi Güler said yesterday that the government is resolved on developing domestic nuclear energy facilities and will achieve this objective at any cost. “Turkey missed several opportunities to develop nuclear energy, but this time we will not miss it. We will make it happen,” he said.
The minister was speaking at the Nuclear Energy Arena conference organized by the Strategic, Technical and Economic Research Center (STEAM) in İstanbul. Güler noted that the government’s “energy equation” is based on five pillars — coal, natural gas, hydroelectricity, renewable energy and nuclear power. He said there is extensive work being done in the area of renewable resources and that nuclear power is a must for Turkey, even if all the other resources to generate energy are efficiently mobilized. “We want to carry it out in a rational way. Some 25 years ago, the energy issue was a very easy one but today it is very different.Taking supply security issues into consideration, energy is a matter of national security in today’s world,” Güler stated.
Although the government seems determined to move forward with nuclear energy, increasing opposition has risen against it, especially from environmental groups. The law allowing for the construction of nuclear power plants on sites specially designated by state institutions was passed by Parliament and President Abdullah Gül approved it in November 2007. Since then, protestors have geared up their demonstrations.
Çalık Holding Chairman Ahmet Çalık also addressed the forum, saying that new generation nuclear energy presented environment-friendly and stable energy alternatives. Demand is soaring in parallel to the boom in the Chinese and Indian economies, he pointed out, and noted that concerns over supply security, risk management, resource sufficiency and prices are also rising accordingly. This renders the adoption of a new global energy diplomacy a prerequisite, he asserted.
After the discussions, the minister held a separate meeting with Peter Lyons, a commissioner of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Turkey’s renewable energy potential sufficient
Associate Professor Tanay Sıdkı Uyar of Marmara University’s Energy Department has said that Turkey’s renewable energy potential — including solar power, wind power, hydropower and geothermal power — can provide for all of Turkey’s energy needs if utilized to their full potential, Anatolia news agency reported yesterday. Uyar also said Turkey should search for ways to benefit from its energy sources more efficiently, as energy scarcity is always an important issue on Turkey’s agenda.”It is possible to generate electricity from wind that may be enough for two-fold of Turkey’s current energy need — and the underground hot water reserves are sufficient to meet one-third of Turkey’s hot water need,” he said, adding that Turkey should focus more on renewable energy sources instead of fossil fuels like oil and coal.
source: Today’s Zaman
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