Natural gas storage facilities reach full capacity: Minister

ANKARA

Türkiye has fully stocked its underground natural gas storage facilities as the country prepares for the winter season, Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar has announced.

Highlighting the importance of supply security, Bayraktar stated that the capacity of the Tuz Gölü Underground Natural Gas Storage Facility has been expanded from 1.2 billion cubic meters to 1.7 billion cubic meters. “Our underground natural gas storage facilities are now 100 percent full,” he said.

According to a statement from the ministry, to secure natural gas supply, short-, medium- and long-term LNG agreements have been signed while efforts to expand Türkiye’s storage capacity continue. The underground facilities in Tuz Gölü and Silivri play a critical role in maintaining the daily supply-demand balance during the winter months, when consumption is at its peak.

The Silivri Natural Gas Storage Facility currently operates with a capacity of 4.6 billion cubic meters, while the Tuz Gölü facility stores increasing volumes of natural gas each year in vast salt caverns beneath the lake. The ministry has set ambitious targets: Expanding Silivri’s capacity to 6 billion cubic meters by 2028 and Tuz Gölü’s to 8.5 billion cubic meters by 2032.

Bayraktar emphasized that these facilities ensure Türkiye is fully prepared for winter, noting that with the latest expansion, the combined capacity of Silivri and Tuz Gölü has reached 6.3 billion cubic meters.

He added that investments will continue to grow, noting: “By 2028, at least 20 percent of the natural gas we consume will be supplied from our underground storage facilities.”