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Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said natural gas production in the Black Sea will double starting in the third quarter of 2026, marking what he described as a new era in Türkiye’s oil and natural gas exploration.
Bayraktar said the Osman Gazi Floating Production Platform will double output at the Sakarya Gas Field, increasing production capacity to meet the natural gas needs of up to 8 million households.
Speaking via video conference on New Year’s Eve from the Filyos Natural Gas Processing Facility in Zonguldak to the Seyit Onbasi Drilling Tower site at Mount Gabar in Sirnak, Bayraktar congratulated employees of TPAO and TPIC working in the field.
Bayraktar said natural gas has been supplied to 85% of Türkiye’s population, noting that while much of this demand was previously met through imports, domestic production in the Black Sea began in 2023.
He said Türkiye currently produces around 10 million cubic meters of natural gas per day, enough to meet the needs of about 4 million households.
Bayraktar said final preparations for the Osman Gazi Floating Production Platform are ongoing in Filyos.
He said production at the Sakarya Gas Field will double in the third quarter of 2026, increasing coverage from 4 million to 8 million households.
He said a second, higher-capacity platform will be introduced in 2028, completing the first three phases of the Sakarya Gas Field and increasing supply capacity to meet the natural gas needs of 17 million households.
Bayraktar said the number of workers at the Sakarya Gas Field will increase from 5,000 to 7,500 by March.
He said the Fatih, Kanuni and Abdulhamid Han drilling ships are operating at full capacity and recalled that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced the arrival of two new deep-sea drilling vessels.
Bayraktar said the vessels, named Cagri Bey and Yildirim, are currently in Tasucu, Mersin.
He said Yildirim is expected to head to the Black Sea in the coming months, while Cagri Bey will travel to Somalia in February to carry out Türkiye’s first overseas deep-sea drilling operation.
Bayraktar said six new exploratory drilling operations are planned in the western, central and eastern Black Sea.
He said Türkiye aims to announce new discoveries through these efforts.
He said operations at Mount Gabar continue at full pace, with more than 3,500 people working at over 100 wells.
Bayraktar also said Türkiye plans to begin work on shale oil production in Diyarbakir next year.
He said 2026 will mark a new period for Türkiye in oil and natural gas exploration.
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