In the energy market, the term electrical facility refers to facilities related to the generation, storage, transmission, distribution and consumption of electrical energy. This article examines and assesses the amendments made to the Regulation governing electrical facilities.

The Regulation on Amendments to the Electrical Facilities Project Regulation, published in the Official Gazette dated 09.02.2025 and numbered 32808, introduces significant updates to the existing Regulation. These amendments, which took effect upon publication, include various revisions aimed at ensuring that electrical facilities comply with modern technology standards. The key focus areas of the amendments include project approval processes, authorization procedures, and new regulations for storage facilities.

Key Amendments:

Purpose

The Regulation’s objective has been revised to ensure that electrical facility aligns with modern technological advancements.

New procedures for authorization and certification of individuals or entities responsible for project approvals and commissioning have been introduced.

Scope

The updated Article 2/1 states that authorization processes for individuals conducting facility commissioning and certification are included within the Regulation’s scope.

The amendment to Article 2/2(d) states that, within the premises of electrical facility, any facilities that are not directly involved in electricity generation, storage, transmission, distribution, or consumption are excluded from the Regulation.

Definitions

Several key definitions have been updated or added, including:

Electrical facility (Article 4/1(m)): Now explicitly includes energy storage facilities.

Installed capacity (Article4/1(çç)): Now considers the maximum power (Mwe) from storage units that can be supplied to the system.

Preliminary project (Article 4/1 (hh)): Now defined as a document covering the characteristics of storage-integrated power plants.

Facility (Article 4/1 (tt)): Now explicitly includes all activities related to electricity generation, storage, transmission, distribution, and consumption.

Storage unit (Article 4/1 (bbb)): Expanded to independent storage units that can store and discharge energy.

New concepts are introduced (Articles 4/1 eee-rrr)

Relevant Standards & Documents

Article 5/3 prohibits the use of non-standardized materials or equipment in electrical facilities unless they comply with regulatory standards.

Delegation of Authority

Project approvals and acceptance processes are now under the authority of the Ministry (Article 8/1).

The Ministry publishes approval formats online and updates them as necessary (Article 8/2).

Procedures and Principles

It is stipulated in Article 9/1 that the public institution/organization Project Approval Units (“PAU”) may determine and publish the relevant procedures and principles under the specified conditions.

Project Preparation & Submission

Electrical Facilities Project Scope/ Power Plant, Storage Integrated Power Plants, and Storage -Based Generation Facility Preliminary Project Scope must now be included in project documentation (Article 10/1).

Project submission rules have been revised to require specific conditions for preliminary licensed and licensed storage-integrated power plants and preliminary licensed and licensed storage-based generation facilities (Article 11/1, 11/2).

Project Approval

Electromechanical equipment must now be certified by accredited institutions or meet standard compliance requirements (Article 12/7).

Construction Suitability Reports are now required for storage-integrated power plants and storage-based generation facilities along with power plants, before submission (Article 12/8).

Electronic signatures are now allowed for project approvals (Article 12/10).

Preliminary Project Approval

Preliminary licenses now allow for the preliminary project approval of a power plant, storage integrated power plant, and storage -based generation facility (Article 13/1).

Preliminary project approval will only be granted for preliminary licensed/licensed power plants, preliminary licensed/licensed storage integrated power plants and preliminary licensed/ licensed storage-based generation facilities (Article 13/3).

Facility Construction

The construction of licensed power plants, licensed storage-integrated power plants, and licensed storage-based generation facilities may begin only after the listed tasks and procedures have been completed (Article 14).

Multi-Source Electricity Generation Facilities

A new article (15/A) has been added to cover regulations for hybrid and multi- source power plants.

All existing power plant regulations will now apply to multi-source generation facilities.

In license applications, one energy source must be designated as the “main source” while others will be classified as “auxiliary sources”.

General Assessment

It is expected that the revisions will promote the use of renewable energy, ensuring energy supply security and increasing the stability of the electricity market.

By allowing electronic approval processes and better defining hybrid, storage-integrated power plants, and storage-based generation facility, the Regulation is anticipated to contribute to the modernization and efficiency of the electricity sector.

@Zeynep EMİROĞLU