Erdoğan says Türkiye aims for full energy independence, outlines production targets at Istanbul summit

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Friday said Türkiye aims to achieve full energy independence, outlining production targets and infrastructure investments at the second edition of the Istanbul Natural Resources Summit.

Speaking at the event organized in cooperation between Turkuvaz Media and the Energy and Natural Resources Ministry, Erdoğan said Türkiye is the strongest bridge, transit and junction point between geographies with rich energy resources and countries that need them. He pointed to recent conflicts, including the Russia-Ukraine war and the U.S.-Israel-Iran conflict, as having triggered severe volatility in energy prices and raised concerns over global supply security.

Erdoğan said Türkiye plans to raise its daily LNG regasification capacity from 161 million cubic meters to 200 million cubic meters through new investments. He noted that daily production from the Sakarya field in the Black Sea has reached 9.5 million cubic meters, enough to supply millions of households. Output is expected to increase to 20 million cubic meters per day in 2026 with the commissioning of the Osman Gazi floating gas production platform, Türkiye's first. A third production phase planned for 2028 would increase output to 45 million cubic meters per day, supplying up to 17 million households with domestically produced natural gas.

Erdoğan said the Gabar field in southeastern Türkiye now accounts for 44% of the country's domestic oil production, describing it as the largest oil find in the republic's history. Following the Gabar discovery, authorities identified four additional exploration areas in Diyarbakır province and plan to drill 24 wells over the next three years. Türkiye aims to transform its state energy company into a producer of 1 million barrels of oil and natural gas per day through expanded domestic and international exploration efforts.

Erdoğan described offshore drilling operations in Somalia as Türkiye's first deep-sea exploration project abroad, with operations expected to be completed within six to nine months depending on weather conditions. He added that Türkiye is working with the Syrian government on joint projects in the oil and mining sectors.

Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar told the summit that the recent Iran-centered conflict demonstrated the importance of energy security and revealed how fragile the global economy can be. Bayraktar said Türkiye foresees a total investment of $30 billion for a strong grid infrastructure required by its advanced renewable energy portfolio. He also said the foundation of an industrial facility at the pilot rare earth elements site in Beylikova would soon be laid.