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Detail – Energy Country Profile

Turkey: New climate target delays the net zero emissions goal

Turkey presented an updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) at COP27, designating 2038 as the year when emissions will peak. By not making abiding plans to reduce emissions, the new scenario translates into an increase in current greenhouse gas emissions of more than 30% until 2030.

At the UN Climate Summit in Egypt, the Turkish Minister of Environment, Urbanization, and Climate Change announced an update to the country's climate target for 2030. The new Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) falls short of Turkey's goal of achieving climate neutrality by 2053, which was announced last year. The Climate Action Network Europe (CAN Europe) has criticized the new target as insufficient and partly inaccurate. The new goal actually envisions an increase in dangerous greenhouse gas emissions until 2038, instead of a reduction, as the goal is not calculated in absolute terms. This could delay Turkey's energy transition and hinder the 2053 net zero emissions target. Furthermore, higher ambition is needed to meet the mitigation work program that governments are expected to adopt at COP27. According to calculations by climate civil society organizations and think tanks, Turkey's emissions could be reduced by 35% by 2030 compared to 2020 levels, thus achieving the 2053 net zero target in a more efficient and less costly way.

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