Energy minister hints at new oil discovery in Gabar

MOSCOW

Türkiye could soon announce a new oil discovery in Gabar, Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar has said.

Speaking to Anadolu Agency on the sidelines of Russian Energy Week in Moscow, Bayraktar said oil and gas exploration was continuing both onshore and offshore.

“We may soon have more good news from Gabar,” he said.

Bayraktar said Black Sea gas production was set to double to 7.5 billion cubic meters a year and reach roughly four times its current level by 2028.

Production at the Sakarya Gas Field began in 2023.

The minister also said Türkiye aimed to bring the first reactor at the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant online within the next few months.

“We are now very close to generating electricity at the first reactor,” he said.

Bayraktar said he had discussed planned nuclear power plants in Sinop and Thrace with Russian officials.

He described nuclear energy as essential to meeting growing electricity demand, citing population and economic growth alongside expanding use of data centers, artificial intelligence and electric vehicles.

Despite successive crises in global energy markets, Türkiye had experienced no problems with supply security, he said, pointing to efforts to diversify both energy sources and suppliers.

Long-term agreements for liquefied natural gas from the United States would provide alternatives in the event of pipeline disruptions, he added.

Bayraktar said Russia remained an important supplier of oil, natural gas and petroleum products.

A diesel supply agreement between Washington and Moscow was also important for Türkiye’s supply security, given its substantial purchases of Russian diesel, he said.

Russia had supplied Türkiye with more than 600 billion cubic meters of natural gas since their first gas agreement in 1986, according to Bayraktar.

He said talks with Gazprom had covered further cooperation on gas infrastructure and regional supply security.

The minister also called for the Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline, the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline and the Iraq-Türkiye oil pipeline to operate at full capacity, saying this would benefit both producing and consuming countries.