Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar has unveiled details of the upcoming drilling operation to be carried out by the Çağrı Bey drillship in Somali waters, describing it as a potentially transformative project for the region.
Bayraktar emphasized that the decision followed more than a year of extensive studies both in the field and in offices, with artificial intelligence tools also employed in the process.
“This activity in Somalia could have a game-changing impact across the entire region. We are hopeful. After a serious effort, we decided on this location, where we believe there are stronger indications of petroleum,” he said.
The minister explained that the operation will take place at a sea depth of 3,480 meters, equivalent to 3.5 kilometers of water, followed by an additional 3.5 kilometers of drilling beneath the seabed. “If petroleum is present there, our goal is to discover and extract it,” Bayraktar noted.
Operations at Sakarya Field in Black Sea
Turning to domestic energy developments, Bayraktar highlighted progress at the Sakarya Gas Field in the Black Sea. He announced that the Osman Gazi Floating Production Platform will soon be commissioned, capable of producing and transmitting 9–10 million cubic meters of gas per day to shore, effectively doubling current output and supplying local gas to 8 million households.
Looking ahead, he revealed that a second floating production platform, twice the size of Osman Gazi and with a daily capacity of 20–25 million cubic meters, is scheduled to arrive in Türkiye by March or April 2028.
“I don’t know what its name will be, but I would like it to be called ‘Orhan Gazi,’ since it will serve the same mission,” Bayraktar said.
With both platforms operational by the winter of 2028, Türkiye aims to meet the natural gas needs of 16–17 million households domestically, he added.
Türkiye has expanded its energy fleet with the addition of two state-of-the-art ultra-deepwater drill ships — Çağrı Bey and Yıldırım — boosting exploration and production capacity under the Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO), raising Türkiye’s fleet of ultra-deepwater drillships from four to six.
Bayraktar further outlined progress in rare earth element exploration, noting that 125,000 meters of drilling and 59,000 tests have been conducted in Beylikova, Eskişehir.
He also pointed to unconventional oil exploration in Diyarbakır, where horizontal drilling is planned for 2026. “That year will be when we test this unconventional production method. A positive result there could take us to a very different level. It could be one of the defining developments of 2026,” he said.
