GAMA Enerji signed a loan agreement with TSKB in Istanbul on July 5, for financing the Gök II wind farm, which is expected to reach commercial operation in 2014.
The 13 GE 2.75-103 wind turbines that will power the Gök II wind farm have advanced efficiency and reliability for a broad range of wind conditions and grid connection capabilities. They also have high availability rates to support the wind farm’s energy targets. The Gök II Wind Power Plant will be the third GE- and GAMA-owned wind farm in Turkey and will help the country reach its goal of generating 20,000 MW of wind energy by 2023.
With the completion of Gök II, the operational wind power capacity of GAMA Enerji’s three wind farms will increase to 67.5 MW, the equivalent to the required energy needs of approximately 115,000 Turkish homes.
“GE’s 2.75-103 wind turbines are the right machines for medium to high wind conditions in Akhisar, Manisa. The 13 units’ power curve will allow Gök II to capture the most wind and provide much-needed additional electricity for Turkey,” said Arif Ozozan, board member and CEO, GAMA Enerji A.Ş. “This is the third GAMA Enerji wind farm in Turkey, and we have the utmost confidence in GE’s wide-ranging portfolio of multi-megawatt wind turbines.”
According to a report by the Energy Market Regulatory Authority of Turkey, the country’s annual electricity demand increase is 5.68 percent. In comparison, the annual electricity demand increase in the European Union is only 1.6 percent. Turkey’s energy import dependency is 74 percent, and the three GAMA Enerji owned wind farms will help increase the country’s total installed capacity.
“Turkey is one of the largest wind energy regions in Europe with a prospective wind generation capacity of about 48,000 megawatts. Much of that potential remains untapped as the existing wind farms produce only about 2,500 megawatts. The Gök II Wind Power Plant in Akhisar, Manisa, will help Turkey reach its energy goals,” said Mete Maltepe, general manager, GE Power & Water in Turkey.
GAMA Enerji, the investor and operator of both the 22.5-MW Sares Wind Power Plant (Ezine, Çanakkale) and the 10-MW Karadağ Wind Power Plant (Aliağa, İzmir), which began commercial operation in 2011 and 2012, respectively, obtained a generation license for Gök II in February 2012. By focusing on cleaner energy, including renewable energy investments, GAMA Enerji aims to become an investor in all the areas of electricity generation and increase its total capacity to 2,500 MW by 2016.
The GE 2.75-103’s doubly fed induction generator units allow for greater energy capture and improved project economics. These machines feature larger rotors, higher towers and greater hub heights than previous models, resulting in greater power output. The machines for the Gök II wind farm will feature 103-meter rotors to maximize annual energy production.
GAMA, founded in 1959, builds power plants, refineries, cement, petro-chemical and gas plants, factories, high-rise buildings, water treatment plants and transmission lines, bridges and other infrastructural constructions along with funding various energy investments. GAMA is a leading international contractor with projects in 20 countries extending from Ireland in the west to Russia’s Sakhalin Island in the east. GAMA Holding Companies currently undertake projects valued $4.5 billion USD in seven countries. Besides serving as an EPC company and constructing industrial facilities, GAMA also invests in energy projects.
GAMA Enerji was formed with a platform of power and water infrastructure assets that were completed by GAMA under a build-operate-transfer model. GAMA Enerji owns equity in projects that have a total electricity capacity of 1,142 MW and water conveyance capacity of 242 million m3/year. GAMA Enerji continues to develop and invest in power and water infrastructure projects in Turkey and the surrounding region.