Turkey's TPAO joins major Azeri gas field project
Turkey's state energy company TPAO is joining a major natural gas field off Azerbaijan as a partner, in a deal that will mark a new chapter in bilateral cooperation, Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar announced on Monday.
The gas production-sharing agreement will be signed between TPAO, Azerbaijan's SOCAR and British energy giant BP on Tuesday and covers the Shafag-Asiman offshore block in the Caspian Sea, Bayraktar told the Baku Energy Week conference.
He described the partnership between Turkey and Azerbaijan as a 'strategic energy alliance built on deep-rooted history, shared culture and a common vision' and said the new deal would enhance joint production in Azerbaijan.
The Shafag-Asiman offshore block has long been viewed as a promising site for hydrocarbon exploration. It is 125 kilometres (78 miles) southeast of Baku and at a depth of 650-800 metres, according to SOCAR's website. The first exploration well was drilled in 2020.
'Hopefully, we will finalize the agreement here. We have acquired a 30 percent stake. Our partners are SOCAR and BP. We hope to begin production at this field,' Bayraktar told reporters on the sidelines of the conference.
In a message sent to the opening ceremony of the event, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan reaffirmed Turkey's commitment to deepening energy cooperation with Azerbaijan, calling their joint projects a key to regional and European energy security.
Erdogan praised the enduring partnership between Ankara and Baku, which he said has been crowned with joint infrastructure projects such as the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC), Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum pipelines, and the Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP).
'Our collaboration not only benefits Turkey and Azerbaijan but also continues to make significant contributions to the energy security of the region and Europe,' said thepresident.
On the sidelines of the event, Bayraktar held a meeting with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, which he described as productive, focusing on expanding cooperation across various energy domains.
'TPAO's presence in Azerbaijan is growing.
We're also discussing collaboration on additional fields and will continue to ramp up our activity in the Caspian Sea,' he said.
Bayraktar echoed Erdoğan's view that Turkish-Azerbaijani energy projects contribute to Europe's energy security.
'In the coming period, we anticipate new developments regarding projects that aim to deliver gas to Europe from alternative and additional sources,' he said.
He also highlighted Azerbaijan's increasing investments in renewables and revealed plans for cross-border clean energy infrastructure.
'In the period ahead, we will develop projects for generating renewable energy in Nakhchivan and transporting it to Turkey, and through Turkey on to Europe,' he added.
The remarks come at a time of rising global energy uncertainty driven by geopolitical conflicts, aging infrastructure and market volatility.
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