Alparslan Bayraktar (born 1975) is a Turkish academic, engineer, and politician. He has served as Minister of Energy and Natural Resources since 2023. Before this role, he had held several senior positions within the ministry, including commissioner of the Energy Market Regulatory Authority and Deputy Minister. Since 2015, Bayraktar has been the chair of the

World Energy Council The World Energy Council is a global forum for thought-leadership and tangible engagement with headquarters in London. Its mission is 'To promote the sustainable supply and use of energy for the greatest benefit of all people'. The idea for the fo ...

for

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

and, since 2018, the Istanbul Center for Regulation.

Early life and education

Bayraktar was born on July 9, 1975, in

Kırıkhan Kırıkhan is a municipality and district of Hatay Province, Turkey. Its area is 715 km2, and its population is 121,028 (2022). The name ''Kırıkhan'' means "broken inn" in the Turkish language, perhaps a reference to one of the many lodgings ...

Hatay Province Hatay Province (, ) is the southernmost province and metropolitan municipality of Turkey. Its area is , and its population is 1,686,043 (2022). It is situated mostly outside Anatolia, along the eastern coast of the Levantine Sea. The province ...

. His family was originally from

Trabzon Trabzon, historically known as Trebizond, is a city on the Black Sea coast of northeastern Turkey and the capital of Trabzon Province. The city was founded in 756 BC as "Trapezous" by colonists from Miletus. It was added into the Achaemenid E ...

but later moved to

Ankara Ankara is the capital city of Turkey and List of national capitals by area, the largest capital by area in the world. Located in the Central Anatolia Region, central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5,290,822 in its urban center ( ...

, where he completed his education. Bayraktar holds a Bachelor's Degree of Science in Mechanical Engineering from

Istanbul Technical University Istanbul Technical University, also known as Technical University of Istanbul (, commonly referred to as İTÜ), is an public university, public technical university located in Istanbul, Turkey. It is the world's third-oldest technical university ...

, a Master's Degree in Arts, and some education in

International Relations International relations (IR, and also referred to as international studies, international politics, or international affairs) is an academic discipline. In a broader sense, the study of IR, in addition to multilateral relations, concerns al ...

from

Tufts University Tufts University is a private research university in Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts, United States, with additional facilities in Boston and Grafton, as well as Talloires, France. Tufts also has several Doctor of Physical Therapy p ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

. He also obtained a Master's Degree in Law and Economics from

Bilkent University Bilkent University () is a private non-profit research university located in Ankara, Turkey. It was founded by İhsan Doğramacı, the first president of the Council of Higher Education and the head of the prominent Doğramacı family, with th ...

in Ankara. He received his

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

in Energy,

Environmental Economics Environmental economics is a sub-field of economics concerned with environmental issues. It has become a widely studied subject due to growing environmental concerns in the twenty-first century. Environmental economics "undertakes theoretical ...

, and Policy from

Middle East Technical University Middle East Technical University (commonly referred to as METU; in Turkish language, Turkish, ''Orta Doğu Teknik Üniversitesi'', ODTÜ) is a prestigious public university, public Institute of technology, technical university located in Ankara, ...

(METU) in

, focusing his research on "A Multidimensional Analysis of Turkish-German Low Carbon Energy Transitions."

Career

Academic career

Bayraktar has lectured at Bilkent Uni.D.versity in

for the Energy Economics, Policy, and Security (EEPS) program and at

(METU) in

. He has also contributed to several op-eds and articles on topics such as energy transition, enhancing supply security, and energy governance.

Political career

Bayraktar's career in Turkey's energy sector progressed steadily before he became the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources of the

Republic of Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

on June 4, 2023. He began his political career began as a Commissioner of the Energy Market Regulatory Authority from 2010 to 2016. Following this, he served as the General Director of International Affairs and the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

from 2016 to 2018, which led to his appointment as Deputy Undersecretary. From 2018 until 2023, he held the position of Deputy Minister. During his time, Bayraktar contributed to "Turkish Energy Transition 1.0",https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Turkeys_Energy_Nexus-Discoveries_and_Developments.pdf a foundational initiative that informed the National Energy and Mining Strategy. This earlier period, pre-2016, involved identifying the necessity for guidelines to ensure effective energy supply and encourage clean energy adoption. After Turkey's National Energy and Mining Strategy was announced in 2017, Bayraktar then detailed plans for "Turkish Energy Transition 2.0." This subsequent phase focused on policies designed to improve supply security, decrease reliance on foreign sources, and diversify Turkey's energy by increasing renewable energy's share. Throughout his career, Bayraktar has frequently addressed international energy forums. His discussions at these events have covered various topics, including the future of energy, objectives for carbon neutrality, and the function of nuclear energy in transitioning to clean energy.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bayraktar, Alparslan 1975 births Living people 21st-century Turkish engineers Istanbul Technical University alumni Bilkent University alumni Middle East Technical University alumni Ministers of energy and natural resources of Turkey Justice and Development Party (Turkey) politicians People from Hatay Province Members of the 67th government of Turkey Turkish engineering academics