Türkiye to enter "year of energy" with mega projects

ANKARA

Türkiye has major energy projects in the pipeline planned to commence in 2023, ranging from a natural gas supply project to the country's first nuclear power plant.
The projects will support the country's aim to reduce foreign dependency on energy.

The country currently has 7 international natural gas pipelines, 4 liquified natural gas (LNG) power plants, 2 of which are floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU), and 2 underground natural gas storage facilities.

Third regasification project ready for operation

Türkiye's first FSRU facility in Izmir has a daily capacity of 20 million cubic meters of gas to feed the grid.

The second facility, Ertugrul Gazi FSRU, has a capacity of 170,000 cubic meters and an annual regasification capacity of 2.5 billion cubic meters. The maximum daily gasification capacity of the ship is 28 million cubic meters.

Türkiye is on track to open its third FSRU in Saros in January.

Gas storage plays an increasing role in energy security with the expansion of facilities.

The Salt Lake Underground Natural Gas Facility, located in the Central Anatolian province of Aksaray, is currently storing 1.2 billion cubic meters of natural gas a year. Plans are afoot to expand capacity to 5.4 billion cubic meters within the next year.

Preparations underway for national gas to hit market

Türkiye is planning to start natural gas flow from its Sakarya Gas Field in March.

Sakarya Gas Field reserve, which has the capacity to meet the natural gas needs of households for 33 years, was confirmed by international independent audit institutions.

With the discovery of a new reserve of 58 billion cubic meters in the Caycuma-1 well located in the Black Sea, the total gas reserves of the country increased from 540 billion cubic meters to 710 billion cubic meters.

Gas was first discovered in the field in August 2020. With an initial reserve of 320 billion cubic meters, the discovery was the largest in the country's history.

First nuclear plant to start power generation

Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant on the Mediterranean coast will be the first plant to generate electricity from nuclear in the country.

Designed to have an installed capacity of 4,800 megawatts with a total of 4 reactors, the plant will start generating electricity in 2023.

The country has plans for at least two other large-scale nuclear power plants, one on the Black Sea coast and a third plant in the Thrace region.

Country struck oil in the southeast

The country is entering the new year with the discovery of 150 million barrels of oil reserves in Gabar Mountain in the southeastern city of Sirnak.

With a reserve of 150 million barrels, the field is among the 10 largest oil fields discovered on land in 2022 in the world.

Oil consumption in Türkiye is approximately 950,000 barrels per day, while production is around 65,000 barrels. With the discovery, the country is planning to produce 100,000 barrels of crude oil daily in 2023.

Renewable energy to increase

Türkiye's first and the world's largest wave power plant will be established in Ordu in the Black Sea region. The project is planned to have an installed capacity of 77 megawatts.

Construction of the power plant will begin in the spring and the facility is expected to be commissioned within a year after the start of construction.

At least 1,000 megawatts of wind and solar energy capacity for each is expected to be added to the country's renewable portfolio in 2023.