Sakarya Gas Field to get investment of $10 billion

ANKARA

Turkey will provide state support for a major project to develop the natural gas field it discovered in the Black Sea, according to a presidential decree published in the Official Gazette yesterday.

Turkish Petroleum (TPAO) project’s investment value will be 145.1 billion Turkish Liras (approximately $10 billion) and the project period will be 11 years, according to the decree.

The state support for the gas field development, which will create jobs for more than 1,000 people, will include customs duty exemption, value-added tax (VAT) exemption and 100 percent tax reduction.

Expansion of the project over the next 10 years is expected eventually to lift annual production capacity to 14 billion cubic meters (bcm). Natural gas was discovered in the Sakarya field off the coast of Turkey’s northern province of Zonguldak in 2020, with volumes having since been estimated at 540 bcm.

Data from the Energy Market Regulatory Authority (EPDK) shows that Turkey’s natural gas consumption amounted to 59.6 billion cubic meters in 2021, rising 24 percent from the previous year, while the country’s imports grew 22 percent to 58.7 billion cubic meters.

Natural gas flow from the Sakarya Gas Field is expected to reach the natural gas processing facility to be established in the Black Sea coastal town of Filyos in 2023. The maximum annual production from the field could range between 15 and 20 bcm, corresponding to around 30 percent of the country’s yearly gas consumption.

Power consumption reached 28.60 billion kilowatt-hours in January, while electricity production also increased by 6.48 percent to 28.56 billion kilowatt-hours compared to January 2021.

Out of January’s total production, hydro plants generated 16.45 percent, whereas 26.6 percent was derived from natural gas and 21 percent from imported coal.

The share of local coal plants in electricity generation was 16.2 percent. Wind plants generated 10.85 percent and the remaining share came from geothermal, fuel oil and biogas plants.

In recent years, droughts have lowered the share of hydropower stations in the country’s power generation. In general, gas-powered stations filled the gap caused by droughts.