Türkiye to begin receiving Turkmen gas deliveries
A close-up view of a pipeline valve at a natural gas facility (Adobe Stock Photo)
Türkiye will begin receiving natural gas deliveries from Turkmenistan Saturday, marking a historic milestone in energy relations between the two nations, Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar announced.
The agreement will supply 1.3 billion cubic meters of gas by year’s end—enough to meet the needs of 1.5 million households in Türkiye, Bayraktar told the Anadolu Agency.
“We will extend this agreement with Turkmenistan to five years,” Bayraktar said.
The deal represents the culmination of negotiations that began in 1998 and have taken 27 years to finalize. It also marks the first time in over two decades that Türkiye will import pipeline gas from a non-neighboring country.
Turkmen gas comes after Erdogan’s meeting with Berdimuhamedov
The breakthrough follows a meeting between President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Turkmenistan’s People’s Council Chairman Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov during the Antalya Diplomacy Forum on March 1, 2024, where the leaders signed agreements to enhance cooperation in natural gas and petroleum.
“There was a declaration of intent regarding the delivery of Turkmenistan’s rich natural gas resources to Türkiye and through Türkiye to the West,” Bayraktar said. “Afterward, an agreement was reached between BOTAS and Turkmengaz on the supply of Turkmen gas to Türkiye.”
Intensive efforts have since been made to establish the necessary technical and legal infrastructure for gas flow between the countries.
The gas will reach Türkiye through a swap arrangement, traveling from Turkmenistan to Iran via the Dovletabad-Serakhs-Hangeran Natural Gas Pipeline, then being delivered to Türkiye at the Gurbulak connection point on the Iran-Türkiye border.
Bayraktar emphasized the strategic importance of the deal, calling it “a critical step in Türkiye’s gas supply diversity and import portfolio diversification process.”
“This is a step that strengthens Türkiye’s geopolitical position and reinforces its goal of becoming a natural gas trading hub,” he added.
The agreement represents a new chapter in energy cooperation between the two Turkic nations and supports Türkiye’s long-term aspirations to serve as an energy bridge between resource-rich regions and European markets.
