Turkey’s domestic oil production reached 23.1 million barrels in the first six months of the year, while natural gas output topped 1.6 billion cubic metres, the Energy and Natural Resources Ministry has announced.
According to the ministry, efforts to bring domestic energy resources into the economy — led by oil from the Gabar field and natural gas from the Black Sea — continued at pace through the first half of the year. Of the 23.1 million barrels of oil produced, 21.8 million barrels came through state firm Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO), with the Gabar field alone accounting for 60% of total output.
Natural gas production reached 1.641 billion cubic metres between January and June, with TPAO responsible for 1.608 billion cubic metres and private-sector firms producing the remaining 33 million. The Sakarya Gas Field in the Black Sea accounted for 92% of total gas output.
Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said domestic oil and gas production would continue rising, citing new wells opened at Gabar and plans to double Black Sea gas output this year. “Our domestic oil and natural gas production will continue to grow,” he said.
Mr Bayraktar added that Turkey’s energy ambitions extended beyond its own borders, forming part of what he called the country’s vision of full energy independence. He said Turkish firms were drilling in Somalia and had secured licences for two fields in Libya, one offshore and one onshore, as well as a stake in five fields in Kirkuk, northern Iraq, estimated to hold reserves of around 3 billion barrels of oil. “Turkey is now a global player in energy, exploring and producing both at home and abroad,” he said.
