Cooling-related electricity use in Türkiye is on the rise

Due to rising average temperatures driven by global climate change, the amount of electricity needed for space cooling in Türkiye continues to grow.

Türkiye’s annual electricity use for space cooling reached 10 TWh in 2024, marking a 19% increase over the previous year. This demand also corresponds to more than 8% of total electricity consumption recorded during the summer months of 2024. To put this into perspective: the electricity consumed for cooling alone in Türkiye was equivalent to the annual consumption of approximately 4 million electric vehicles – over 15 times the size of the current EV fleet, which numbered around 268,000.

Between 2022 and 2024, electricity use for cooling increased by 26%, while overall electricity consumption grew by 5.6%. While the average annual growth rate of total electricity demand between 2022 and 2024 was 2.8%, the rate for cooling was more than four times higher, at 12%. This relatively sharp increase in cooling demand highlights the impacts of climate change on Türkiye’s electricity system are becoming increasingly pronounced.

At 2:00 PM on July 28, 2025 – when Türkiye recorded its highest hourly electricity consumption – 18% of demand was driven by cooling. At the 2:00 PM peak, more than 10 GWh of the total 59 GWh consumption was attributed to cooling needs. During the summer months, the share of cooling remains above 10% between 12:00 PM and 6:00 PM.

On weekends and national holidays, when industrial and general human activity decreases, total electricity consumption drops – however, cooling can still account for a substantial portion of hourly consumption, sometimes surpassing 18%. Notably, June 2024 saw relatively higher cooling shares compared to other summer months in 2024, as a week-long national holiday kept overall demand low while cooling persisted as a significant driver.

In the summer months, Türkiye’s daily electricity consumption exceeds 1 TWh – 1.25 times the average daily consumption in the spring and fall – largely due to cooling demand. In May and September, cooling accounts for up to 4% of total daily consumption, while in the peak summer months it rises above 8%. In 2025, the highest daily share of cooling (12%) was recorded on Sunday, July 27, which was a hot weekend day when overall demand was relatively low due to the reduced industrial and commercial activity. 

In the summer months of 2024, cooling-related electricity consumption exceeded an average of 2.5 TWh on a monthly basis, accounting for more than 8% of total electricity consumption during the summer season. In July 2025, this figure reached almost 3 TWh, pushing cooling’s monthly share to 9%. To put this in perspective, the electricity consumed in Türkiye for cooling in this month is equal to the total electricity consumption of all industrial consumers in Istanbul over three months. 

July and August are typically the peak months for cooling-related electricity use in Türkiye. However, extreme heat events can push cooling demand well beyond these typical summer patterns. June 2024 went down in history as Türkiye’s hottest June on record, with average temperatures 3.6 °C above the long-term June average. Due to the impact of this record temperature increase, cooling-related electricity consumption reached 2.4 TWh, rising to nearly 2.5 times the June averages of recent years.

The summer of 2024, with an average temperature of 26.1 °C, was 2.1 °C hotter than Türkiye’s long-term summer average. Between 2023 and 2024, the share of cooling in total summer electricity consumption in Türkiye rose from 7.3% to 8.1%. This increase in cooling demand, in parallel with rising average temperatures, underscores the growing impact of global climate change on Türkiye’s electricity system.