Turkey's first drilling vessel, Fatih, formerly the Deepsea Metro II, arrived in the city of Antalya on late Wednesday in order to start the country's first deep drilling project in the Mediterranean.
According to shipping data, Fatih sailed from the Kocaeli province on June 4 and arrived in Antalya late on June 6.
Turkish Energy and Natural Resources Minister Berat Albayrak said on May 31 at an official sailing ceremony in the Kocaeli province that the vessel would conduct drilling at a depth of 2,600 meters in the Mediterranean, and hailed it as a historical step for Turkey.
Turkey has already undertaken oil and gas explorations using two seismic vessels.
Turkey's first seismic vessel Barbaros Hayrettin Pasa has been conducting operations in the Mediterranean since April 2017 while a second vessel the MTA Oruc Reis is ready for exploration.
By Murat Temizer
Anadolu Agency
energy@aa.com.tr