Turkey outpaced the world average in electricity generation from wind and solar in 2020, according to data compiled by Anadolu Agency from the Global Electricity Review 2021 report of London-based think-tank, Ember on Monday.

Turkey generated 12% of its electricity from wind and solar in 2020 relative to the world average of 9.4%.

Turkey's total electricity generation stood at 302 terawatt-hours (TWh) last year with demand at 301.5 TWh, marking a 0.6% increase compared to 2019.

The share of all renewable sources stood at 43% of the country’s power generation, with coal and gas accounting for 34% and 23%, respectively.

The share of clean energy sources out of global electricity generation last year, including nuclear, was 39%, while coal was 34%.

Turkey was placed above the global average with wind and solar comprising 12% of its electricity last year, and the country ranked fifth out of G20 countries for the share of wind and solar production, ahead of the US and France.

Wind and solar electricity generation in Turkey increased by 15%, or 5 TWh in 2020 and installed capacity grew by 2 gigawatts (GW) to reach just under 16 GW.

Wind, in particular, showed strong growth with 1.2 GW of additional installed capacity in 2020, doubling the amount installed in 2019 and reaching a total of 9 GW.

However, the amount of additional solar capacity installed in 2020 was down 28% compared to 2019.

Turkey needs to maintain the growth in wind generation and escalate investment in solar power to increase the share of clean power, the report revealed.

Hydro production fell 12%, or 11 TWh year-on-year due to lower rainfall and because 2019 was a record year for renewables, with hydroelectricity generation up by 10%.

The report said that generation last year at the three largest hydroelectric plants, Ataturk, Karakaya and Keban, was twice that seen in 2019 compared to 2018 due to above-average seasonal rainfall and snowfall.

The drought in Turkey that followed in the second half of 2020 allowed a recovery in fossil gas generation with a 25% increase, or 13 TWh year-on-year, representing the highest annual fossil gas gain among G20 countries.

Coal generation falls by 6% in 2020

Last year, total electricity generation from coal dropped by 6%. This was mostly because five lignite plants had to cease operations in early 2020, as they did not make the necessary upgrades to comply with environmental regulations.

This brought a drop of 18% in lignite-fired electricity generation.

In Turkey, 1.6 GW of additional capacity was under construction in 2020 while 12.4 GW of proposed capacity was canceled, according to the report.

Wind and solar generation in Turkey more than tripled since 2015

The world’s wind and solar share of production have doubled from 2015 to 2020 by comparison while Turkey’s has "impressively" tripled, according to the report.

Turkey's overall renewable power generation has overtaken coal four-fold since 2015, however, the last two years showed the highest margin at 9%.

Before 2015, renewables output was never higher than fossil fuels combined but in 2019 and 2020 the gap between them substantially dropped. ​​​​​​​

While renewable sources accounted for 33% of electricity generation in 2015, in 2020 they reached 43%, showing a greater uptake than the world average.

Wind and solar increased their share of total generation from around 4% in 2015 to 12% in 2020 with a growth of 23 TWh.

Wind and solar take market share from gas

In line with the global trend, renewable electricity, particularly hydro, displaced fossil gas rather than coal. Electricity generation from natural gas plants fell by around 15% since 2015 but recovered in 2020 as hydro generation returned to normal levels of 26% due to the drought.

The share of natural gas in power generation was 37% in 2015, but fell to about 23% in 2020.

The dominance of gas over renewables is not expected to return to 2015 levels if wind and solar continue their steady growth, Ember said.

Although Turkey's coal generation showed a decrease of 6% last year, it has grown by 39%, or 28 TWh overall, since 2015.

Turkey is one of the three G20 countries where coal's share of production has increased during this period, the others being Indonesia and Russia.

Coal accounted for 29% of electricity generation in 2015 but this rose to 34% in 2020, with an increase of 4 GW in installed capacity over this period. Turkey's electricity demand, which is 1.5 times the global average per capita, grew steadily by 15% since 2015.

According to the report, Turkey has the largest pre-construction pipeline in Europe for new coal-fired plants and ranks third globally behind China and India.

This equates to 18 GW and 23 plants but it is highly unlikely that the majority of these plants will be commissioned as around 80 coal projects have been canceled in Turkey over the last decade./aa

US President Joe Biden on Monday said by April 19 the vast majority of American adults will be eligible to get coronavirus vaccine shots.

"With all work we've done in the past 10 weeks ... I am pleased to announce that at least 90% of all adults in this country will be eligibly vaccinated by April the 19th, just three weeks from now," Biden told reporters, adding that the final 10% will be eligible no later than May 1.

The president said that he directed his COVID team to "ensure there is a vaccine site within five miles of 90% of all Americans by April the 19th" as well.

"We're going to do this by growing from having 17,000 pharmacies giving out vaccination shots to nearly 40,000 pharmacies," he said, adding that his administration will also add 12 more federally run mass vaccination sites meant to give shots to minorities.

Biden reiterated his pledge of 200 million vaccine doses administered by the end of his first 100 days in office.

The first 100 million mark was reached on his 60th day in office and the second mark, he said, will be reached in "40 days."

"Our work is far from over," said Biden. "The war against COVID-19 is far from won."

So far, more than 145.8 million people have gotten shots, including the previous administration's efforts, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.

The US is the worst-hit country by the pandemic with nearly 30.3 million cases and about 550,000 fatalities, according to a running tally by Johns Hopkins University./aa

Efforts to evacuate people trapped after an attack by militants in Mozambique’s northern town of Palma are continuing, despite the tense situation there, a security advisory firm said late Monday.

“We have rescued 120 people who had run away and hidden in camps,” Retired Col. Lionel Dyck, the CEO of Dyck Advisory Group, which was contracted to help the Mozambican government and gas companies fight militants there, told local broadcaster SABC.

Dyck said his group also managed to escort numerous people who could not board their helicopters to places of safety.

“There are numerous dead bodies lying on the streets, some decapitated. We are currently not counting bodies but focusing on the living,” he said, adding the situation in the area is still quite chaotic.

An armed militant group believed to be affiliated with the Daesh/ISIS terrorist group attacked the town of Palma in Cabo Delgado province near the border with Tanzania last Wednesday, killing dozens and injuring scores of others, while several people still unaccounted for.

The area is rich in natural gas, and companies such as France’s Total SA are exploring onshore development of liquefied natural gas (LNG), but experts say attacks could derail the project.

Omar Saranga, spokesman for the Mozambique Defense and Security Forces, confirmed in a statement Sunday that dozens of people including both locals and foreigners had been killed.

Saranga did not mention the nationalities of the dead, but local media named South African national Adrian Nel as one of the foreigners killed in the brutal attack.

The militant group locally known as al-Shabaab but with no established links to the armed militant group in Somalia has wreaked havoc in northern Mozambique since late 2017, killing hundreds, displacing communities and capturing towns.

It has exploited the people's desperation of poverty and unemployment in the area to recruit in large numbers.

Dyck said the militants were previously a group of bandits until they claimed affiliation to Daesh/ISIS and have since become a serious threat.

“This was a very well planned and coordinated attack,” the retired soldier said, adding the group even has heavy weaponry now.

He appealed for assistance with Mi-8 helicopters, which he says could help evacuate stranded people hiding on the ground, as his gunship helicopters can only carry a few people.

South Africa, SADC in talks to eradicate terrorism

Meanwhile, South Africa’s ambassador to Mozambique, Siphiwe Nyanda, said late Monday that his country was in talks with the Southern African Development Community (SADC), a regional block of 15 countries, to seek solutions that will end terrorism in Mozambique.

He said many South Africans who were working in Palma have now been moved to Pemba, a town nearby, and some crossed into Tanzania.

Nearly 670,000 people are now displaced in Mozambique due to the conflict in Cabo Delgado – almost seven times the number reported a year ago.

At least 2,614 people have died in the conflict, including 1,312 civilians.

Humanitarian agencies say the situation has seriously deteriorated over the past 12 months with an escalation of attacks on villages./aa

Czech billionaire Petr Kellner was among five people killed in a helicopter crash in the US state of Alaska, said a statement by his company on Monday.

Kellner and four other people lost their lives when their helicopter crashed near a glacier on Saturday during a skiing trip.

"His professional life was known for his incredible work ethic and creativity, but his private life belonged to his family," said PPF Group, a Czech investment company.

The incident is under investigation, it added.

Kellner, 56, was the co-founder and majority shareholder of PPF since 1991.

He was estimated a net worth of over $17 billion and was the only person from the Czech Republic on Forbes' Billionaires List, ranking 68 last year.

His firm invests in financial services, telecommunications, media, biotechnology, real estate and mechanical engineering, while it owns assets around $51.8 billion as of June, according to its website.

Only one individual survived and is in a serious but stable condition at an Anchorage hospital, according to Alaska State Troopers on Sunday./aa

Pakistan and a Turkish shipbuilder signed two contracts Monday worth $33.46 million for the procurement of four ASD tugboats (LNG compatible) and two pilot boats.

The contracts were signed between Pakistan’s Port Qasim Authority and Sanmar Shipyards, according to a statement from Pakistan's Ministry of Maritime Affairs.

Sanmar, Turkey’s leading tugboat manufacturer, will deliver the vessels within 12 months.

The signing ceremony was witnessed by Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs Syed Ali Haider Zaidi and Turkish Ambassador to Pakistan Mustafa Yurdakul at the Maritime Ministry’s office in the capital Islamabad.

This will be a significant step forward in the brotherly relations between both the countries, the statement said.

Zaidi also invited Sanmar to build a shipyard in Pakistan, share their expertise, transfer their technology and benefit from the local skilled workforce and low wages in Pakistan.

An official from Sanmar said they will take up the invitation seriously and praised the due diligence done by the Port Qasim Authority’s management and promised to deliver the vessels ahead of schedule while ensuring their quality./aa

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AA) – As many as 459 people have been killed in Myanmar in a military crackdown against anti-coup protests, said a human rights group on Monday.

According to a report by the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, the victims include children, teachers as well as youths.

The group said around 60 houses in PyiGyi Dagun township were destroyed by fire on March 27, and residents in nearby neighborhoods were prevented from helping when the junta forces fired at them.

As of March 28, there were a total of 2,559 people arrested, with 37 of them convicted.

Myanmar: Security forces attacking civilian settlements break security cameras

Earlier in the day, a civilian was killed and two others wounded during a protest in the Thaketa area of Yangon, the country's commercial capital.

Junta forces fired at two journalists with rubber bullets and later detained them as they were covering the attack on anti-military demonstrators in Myitkyina area of Kachin province, locals told Myanmar Now news agency.

Meanwhile, a women’s group late Sunday condemned the escalating violence in Karen state, and called for immediate intervention by the international community.

On March 27, soldiers launched night-time airstrikes on Day Bu No village, Lu Thaw Township, Mu Traw District, killing three civilians and injuring seven others, according to the Karen Women’s Organization.

“Moreover, this attack caused more than 10,000 people to flee and hide in the forest,” it said in a statement. “Many villagers are now hiding in terror in the jungle, and more than 3,000 have crossed to Thailand to take refuge."

The group stressed that Myanmar soldiers must be held accountable for the crimes they have committed. “The international community cannot wait any longer. They must intervene."

Last month, Myanmar’s army ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. In response to the coup, civilian groups across the country launched a civil disobedience campaign with mass demonstrations and sit-ins.

Families of children abducted or forcibly recruited by the PKK terror group continue their sit-in protest in southeastern Turkey on the 574th day.

Families of children abducted or forcibly recruited by the PKK terror group have been protesting for more than one and a half years in the Diyarbakir province, calling on their children to lay down arms and surrender to authorities.

The protest outside the offices of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), which the government accuses of having links to the PKK, was started by three mothers on Sept. 3, 2019.

Nadire Cakan, a mother whose son, Muhammed, was abducted in 2011 at the age of 13, said she would not leave the protest site until she gets her son back. Cakan said Muhammed was abducted while going to his school.

Hatice Levent, another protesting mother, said her daughter, Fadime, was abducted by the terror group.

“What do they want from our children? Why did they abduct our children?” she questioned, and said she misses her daughter.

Levent called on her daughter to surrender to Turkish security sources.

So far, at least 24 families have been reunited with their children, who fled the terror group and surrendered to Turkish security forces.

Offenders who are linked to terrorist groups and surrender are eligible for possible sentence reductions under a repentance law in Turkey.

In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US, and the EU – has been responsible for the deaths of at least 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants./aa