ANKARA: Turkiye will take some of the diesel Russia is supplying to global markets under its agreement with US President Donald Trump, Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said on Sunday.
Bayraktar said the US-Russia diesel supply deal was important in terms of energy security for Turkiye. Ankara relies on Russia for some of its energy needs, as well as on Iran, Azerbaijan and others. It is trying to diversify through deals with the US and other partners.
“Russia imposed restrictions on diesel exports in recent months when they started experiencing this problem. Now they reached a diesel deal with Trump… Through the talks we held, we will take some of that diesel to Turkiye,” Bayraktar told broadcaster Kanal 7. He did not elaborate.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, European officials and some of Trump’s fellow Republican politicians strongly criticised the deal.
Bayraktar also said that Turkiye plans to bring a second floating gas production platform online in the first quarter of 2028, adding that the platform would bring Turkiye’s daily output in the Black Sea to 45 million cubic metres.
On Saturday, Turkiye sent its first floating gas production platform, the Osman Gazi, to the Black Sea, a move Bayraktar has said is expected to roughly double daily output from its largest domestic gas field, the Sakarya field, to 20 million cubic metres from the current 9.5 million, equivalent to 7.3 billion cubic metres (bcm) annually.
“In the first quarter of 2028, the second floating production platform is coming to Turkiye and we will carry out 25 million cubic metres of production with it. It has a slightly bigger capacity (than Osman Gazi),” he said.
“Therefore, with 45 million cubic metres, we will be using our own gas in three out of four homes in Turkiye.”
He added that Turkiye’s daily production at the field would increase to 550,000 barrels of oil equivalent with the second floating platform.
Turkiye is one of Europe’s largest gas markets, consuming 59 bcm last year. The country relies on imports for almost all its gas needs, with domestic production totalling 3.1 bcm last year, most of it from the Sakarya field.
Bayraktar also said hydrocarbon exploration operations planned off Pakistan had been delayed by about six months due to the Iran war’s impact on the region.