Turkey plans to bolster biogas production

Turkey's Agriculture and Forestry Ministry is working on projects aimed at utilising geothermal energy resources, particularly in urban agriculture, while officials are looking into ways to boost biomass production in rural areas, according to Daily News.
Specialised greenhouse-organised industrial zones based on geothermal heating (TDIOSB) are favoured by the ministry as the most appropriate model.
This model facilitates the best use of geothermal energy and helps undertake market-focused planned production.
Officials have also selected the locations where these facilities will be constructed, in the provinces of Canakkale and Balıkesir.
Meanwhile, Turkey's Agriculture Ministry is teaming up with the Energy Ministry to offer alternative energy resources to rural areas that currently do not have access to natural gas.
As part of those efforts, the mass production of biogas units that generate energy from cattle waste will be launched soon. The gas produced by that equipment will be offered for use in kitchens in rural areas.
Türkiye has a large biogas production potential, Ali Rıza Oner, a renewable energy expert, told the daily Milliyet.
“The electricity installed capacity based on biomass resources reached 2,172 MW as of end-June, which corresponded to 2.14 of all installed capacity,” he said, noting that those resources provide power to some 4.5 million homes.
The provinces of Konya and Erzurum account for 5.1% and 4.75% of total biogas energy production, respectively, Oner added.
He went on to say that Istabul ranks first in terms of biogas facilities' capacity, followed by the provinces of Balıkesir, Ankara, Samsun and Antalya.
The Türkiye Electromechanics Industries (TEMSAN), operating under the roof of the Energy Ministry, has developed Biotem, which produces biogas from organic wastes.
One Biotem unit can generate energy from three cattle in a month, which is equivalent to 12 propane cylinders used in kitchens. The prototypes of Biotem are currently being used in 10 provinces.