During a speech at the opening ceremony of the Istanbul Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Hospital in the Bahçelievler district, the Turkish president said the discovered gas is sufficient to meet the gas needs of Turkish households for 3.5 years, estimating its market value at approximately $30 billion.
Erdogan described the gas discovery in the Sakarya and Göktepe fields as a "major turning point" in the Turkish people's drive toward energy self-sufficiency, noting that his country has strengthened its exploration fleet with new vessels and developed local and international cooperation to reduce dependence on foreign resources in this field.
He pointed out that Türkiye has, to date, conducted 11 drilling operations in the Mediterranean and 38 operations in the Black Sea, as part of its efforts to expand its energy exploration.
In August 2020, the Turkish Petroleum Corporation announced the discovery of 320 billion cubic meters of natural gas in the Black Sea, which was later updated to 405 billion cubic meters. In June of the following year, an additional 135 billion cubic meters were discovered, bringing the total to 540 billion cubic meters.
In December 2022, the estimate was expanded again to 652 billion cubic meters, and then a new discovery of 58 billion cubic meters was announced, bringing the total discovered quantity to 710 billion cubic meters, according to the assessment of the independent firm DeGolyer & MacNaughton.
