Turkey’s energy import bill has been a major drag on its economy for decades. In 2019, the country imported $41 billion worth of energy among which 45 billion cubic meters of natural gas. Besides LNG imports, the most important exporters are Russia, Azerbaijan, and Iran. Turkey’s high import dependency explains the enthusiasm with which the discovery of the gas field was announced. There is widespread skepticism about whether the publication was too premature. However, it can be better understood if geopolitical factors and the near expiration of several long-term gas import contracts are taken into account. The reservoir is branded ‘Sakarya’ and is located some 150 kilometers from Turkey’s Black Sea coast. The gas field was discovered in ultra-deep waters which makes it difficult to exploit. Furthermore, the field is near Romania’s shore (100 kilometers) and the previous largest gas field in the Black Sea, Neptun Deep block (84 […]