ANKARA: Turkey plans to transfer hydropower plants with a combined capacity of some 1,000 megawatts (MW) from the state power generation company to the newly created sovereign wealth fund, two government officials told Reuters on Monday. The move, expected to be officially announced in the near future, comes after the government has already transferred stakes worth billions of dollars in Turkish Airlines, major banks and other companies to the fund, which was set up last year to help finance big-ticket infrastructure projects.
“In order to diversify and strengthen the Turkish wealth fund’s portfolio, some new steps are being planned. In this regard, some run-of-the-river plants are being planned to be transferred to the fund,” one of the sources told Reuters, referring to a type of hydropower plant. “The decision is expected to be taken soon. These hydropower plants will likely be each around 100 MW, but with the addition of some bigger plants the capacity could reach 1,000 MW,” the source said, adding that capacity could be brought above 1,000 MW if seen appropriate. No one was immediately available to comment at EUAS, the state power generation firm. Turkey’s current hydropower plant capacity stands above 75,000 MW.
