Natural gas from Azerbaijan will be exported to Aleppo via Kilis starting Saturday, August 2, Turkish Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar announced Wednesday.
Speaking during Anadolu's Editors' Desk in Ankara, Bayraktar said the pipeline linking Kilis to Aleppo was completed in May.
“This Saturday, we will begin exporting Azerbaijani gas to Aleppo via Kilis,” he said, adding that Türkiye will cooperate with Azerbaijan and Qatar in the operation.
The daily gas supply aims to increase electricity availability in northern Syria from just 3-4 hours to around 10 hours a day, he said.
The plan is to use 6 million cubic meters of gas to generate up to 1,200 megawatts of power, Bayraktar noted.
He added that Türkiye is already exporting electricity to northern Syria and plans to boost current deliveries to 280 megawatts via existing transmission lines.
Efforts are also underway to reactivate the 500-megawatt Birecik–Aleppo line, which was used in the past.
"The Turkish side of the line is intact. There's major damage on the Syrian side. Once restored, we'll be able to export nearly 900 megawatts, meeting the needs of around 1.6 million households," he said.
Bayraktar emphasized that the easing of certain international sanctions has paved the way for these projects and highlighted their importance in helping to restore normal life in Syria and support the return of displaced people.
- Türkiye begins shale gas exploration in Diyarbakir and Thrace
Türkiye is set to launch shale gas exploration in Diyarbakir and Thrace this year, Bayraktar announced, emphasizing the country's shift toward unconventional production techniques in regions where oil and gas are trapped within rock formations.
Bayraktar outlined Türkiye's new focus on unconventional production, particularly shale gas and tight oil extraction, which requires horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing (fracking) rather than traditional vertical drilling.
"We will apply unconventional production methods in oil fields around Diyarbakir and in gas-bearing fields in Thrace," he said.
The project covers four sites, including an area of about 600 square kilometers north of Bismil, where Türkiye plans to carry out 24 vertical and horizontal drillings, he added.
Fracturing will then be used to release trapped hydrocarbons.
"We're working with American companies, global leaders in this technology, which has made the US the world's top oil and gas producer," he continued.
"In evaluations with partners at the four sites, reserves of 350 million barrels have been identified," Bayraktar noted.
Diyarbakir as a whole may hold 4 to 6 billion barrels of shale oil and gas potential, he added.
"This year, we will carry out one vertical drilling and fracturing operation. Our plan over the next three years is to explore the field with 24 wells and eventually move into production," he said.
- Black Sea Phase 2 to power 8 million homes
Bayraktar also provided updates on the Black Sea natural gas project, announcing that the Osman Gazi floating production unit is expected to go online in the summer of 2026.
Once activated, the second phase of the Sakarya gas field will double current production to 20 million cubic meters per day, enough to supply around 8 million households.
A second floating production platform for the Black Sea field is also under construction, he informed.
"Though not yet named, it is expected to depart from East Asia and arrive in Türkiye by December 2027," Bayraktar said.
By Humeyra Ayaz
Anadolu Agency
energy@aa.com.tr
