Turkiye has approximately 22 billion tons of coal reserves. Experts state that clean coal technologies should be developed in Turkiye so that this reserve can be used.
Muzaffer Polat, President of the Turkish Coal Producers Association (KOMURDER), reminded that Turkiye has approximately 22 billion tons of coal reserves and said, “Clean coal technologies need to be developed in Turkiye, so this reserve can be used.”
Polat said that Turkiye spent $30 billion on coal imports in the last five years, and that this import would decrease if its own coal resources were used.
Underlining that these resources can be used in a more environmentally friendly way by developing clean coal technologies and making them a state policy, Polat said that no country has suddenly removed coal from the energy system.
Polat stated that the importance of domestic resources was understood in the energy crisis that emerged with the COVID-19 epidemic and the subsequent Russia-Ukraine war.
Emphasizing that coal is the backbone of heavy industry all over the world, Polat said:
“Especially after the world energy crisis, many European and developed countries, including Germany, prioritized the use of coal. I do not find Europe sincere about coal. At the COP28 summit, where the final declaration was published recently, Japan announced that it would not give up coal. Coal is an indispensable energy source for both our world and Turkiye. There’s no need to even discuss this. Turkiye has approximately 22 billion tons of coal reserves. Clean coal technologies need to be developed in the country so that this reserve can be used.”
Polat said that there is approximately 5 billion tons of coal trade around the world every year.
Stating that there are studies on consuming coal in environmentally friendly ways in the world and that the development of related technologies is highlighted in Turkiye, Polat continued his words as follows:
“The coal industry, including our universities, focused on equipment cleaning to make coal cleaner. In other words, they asked, ‘Let’s burn coal, but how should we burn it in the most efficient way?’ Combustion technologies that would reduce particle emissions after combustion were looked at, but we came to a point where the decisions taken after the energy crisis prioritized natural gas, and our projects were shelved one by one. However, if the studies on good combustion, fast combustion, profitable combustion and the development of chimney filters had continued, the value of coal would have been better understood.”
Polat said that it is mandatory to use filter technology in chimneys in newly opened production facilities for the clean use of coal.
Underlining that there is a need for government incentives for more widespread use of clean coal technology, Polat said:
“Our President made some statements about coal. ‘I attach importance to our mining and all our underground resources.’ he said. ‘We will pave the way for this.’ he said. This includes coal, gold and chrome. We need to work on all these mines. Our President embraced the mining industry. This is a source of motivation for us. We need to work to survive in the world. We need to work in the field of mining.”
Source: Trthaber / Prepared by Irem Yildiz