Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Alparslan Bayraktar made important statements at the AK Party Zonguldak Extended Provincial Advisory Council Meeting held at the Provincial Directorate of Youth and Sports Conference Hall. Minister Bayraktar stated that the Turkish economy was at the level of 250-260 billion dollars in 2002, and today this figure has reached 1 trillion dollars. He also drew attention to the developments made in the field of energy during this period.
Bayraktar stated that in 2002, natural gas was available in only 5 provinces in Turkey, and today, natural gas access is provided to 72 million people in 81 provinces of Turkey. Reminding that the President emphasized that natural gas, an environmentally friendly and comfortable fuel, should be delivered to homes when he came to power, Bayraktar noted that they are working towards this goal.
Stating that natural gas has become available in 860 settlements in 81 provinces as of today, Bayraktar said, “After 2016, we started to develop a policy that we call ‘national energy and mining policy’ with a national excitement, a national spirit and a different perspective. In this context, Turkey’s energy “We expressed that he should end his addiction,” he said.
Independence in Energy and Domestic Resources
Minister Bayraktar emphasized that Turkey’s independence in energy is a matter of national security and said, “With the deep sea drillings we carried out in the Black Sea, we started to search for oil and natural gas with our own engineers and technicians. Currently, Turkey has one of the most advanced fleets in the world. Fatih said “We have four deep-sea drilling ships named Yavuz, Kanuni and Abdülhamit Han and 2 seismic ships. Additionally, 31 ships continue their work on these activities in Filyos,” he added.
Natural Gas Production and Targets
Stating that the discoveries made in the Sakarya Gas Field are capable of meeting Turkey’s natural gas needs, Bayraktar said, “The natural gas reserve of 710 billion cubic meters, which is the largest natural gas discovery in history, will alone meet Turkey’s natural gas needs for at least 15 years.” he said
Stating that they produce 6 million cubic meters of natural gas per day as of today, Bayraktar said, “2.6 million of the 20 million households that use natural gas in Turkey benefit from the gas produced in Sakarya. In the first stage, we aim to increase this production to 10 million cubic meters in the first quarter of 2025.” he said
Coal Resources and Domestic Energy
Emphasizing the importance of domestic coal, which provides 36 percent of electricity in Turkey, Bayraktar said, “We need to use our coal resources. Even though some groups are campaigning against coal in Zonguldak, we are making a great effort to bring Turkey’s riches to “the economy.” Stating that the Turkish Hard Coal Enterprise produces 1 million tons of hard coal, Bayraktar announced that this amount should be increased and that they are hiring 2 thousand new workers in 2023.
Minister Bayraktar said that Turkey has made a silent revolution in energy and is on its way to becoming a country that meets its own energy with its dams, hydraulic power plants and nuclear power plants. “Our goal for 2053 is to completely end foreign dependence on energy and make Turkey a net exporting country,” he said.
Oil Production and Developments
Emphasizing that natural gas studies in Filyos will continue for 20-25 years, but this is not enough, Bayraktar said, “We aim to increase Turkey’s oil production with the activities carried out in Gabar. While we produced 36 thousand barrels of oil per day across Turkey in 2016, today only “We have now produced 47 thousand barrels of oil from Gabar. “Our goal is to increase this figure to 100 thousand barrels,” he said.
Finally, Minister Bayraktar stated that the country is experiencing a great transformation in the field of energy and that the prayers of the nation gave them strength in this process, and concluded his words by saying, “We will strive to give new victories and good news .” AK Party Zonguldak MPs Ahmet Çolakoğlu and Saffet Bozkurt and AK Party Provincial Chairman Mustafa Çağlayan also spoke at the meeting. At the end of the meeting, Minister Bayraktar took a souvenir photo with the party members.
