AK Party Strives To Reduce Country's Foreign Dependence On Energy

(MENAFN- AzerNews) By News Centre

Turkish energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar, in his speech at the AK Party Üsküdar 8th Ordinary District Congress, held at Çamlıca 1071 congress Center, said that the AK Party has made great revolutions in its 22-year rule and has grown the country threefold in the field of energy since 2002.

Stating that major investments have been made to meet Turkiye's increasing energy needs, Bayraktar conveyed that approximately 100 billion dollars of investment was made in energy production during the AK Party period.

Stating that one of the biggest vulnerabilities in the economy is the external dependency on energy and that the goal of the AK Party government is to make Turkiye independent in energy, Bayraktar said, "If Turkiye becomes independent in energy, its economy will be stronger and its industry will be more competitive. We shape all our policies within this framework."

Also touching on the achievements made by Turkiye in natural gas and oil exploration, Bayraktar said, "Thank God, in 22 years, we have been able to bring natural gas to 85 percent of our population."

Bayraktar also drew attention to the fact that Turkiye is conducting oil and natural gas exploration with its own drilling and seismic vessels, noted that these efforts have yielded results, that the largest natural gas discovery in the history of the Republic was made in the Black Sea in 2020, and that 710 billion cubic meters of natural gas was found in the Sakarya Gas Field.

He underlined that 7 million cubic meters of natural gas is produced per day in the Black Sea field.

"We have reached the point where we can meet the natural gas needs of 3 million households with our own gas. But our work continues day and night. By 2028, we will be meeting the needs of almost all of our homes with our own gas," Bayraktar said.

Bayraktar recalled that they made the largest oil discovery in the history of the Republic in Şırnak Gabar in 2021, and that they are now producing over 70 thousand barrels of oil per day.

The minister pointed out that Turkiye was conducting exploration not only in the country but also in distant geographies with its seismic and drilling ships, as well.

"We are searching for oil in Somalia today. It is a study that everyone is following with great attention and interest. God willing, when we get a result from there, it will truly open up a different world for both Turkiye and especially the Somali people, " he said.

Bayraktar stated that the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant also became a reality under the AK Party government and under the leadership of President Erdoğan.

"We laid the foundation of Akkuyu with the intergovernmental agreement signed between the Republic of Turkiye and the Russian Federation in 2010. We established the legal framework of Akkuyu and work began on the site in 2016. The first concrete was poured in 2018. Today, that site is the largest nuclear power plant construction site in the world. Over 30 thousand of our brothers, some of whom are young brothers we sent to Russia for training, create great employment there and now Turkiye is moving up to a different league in nuclear power with Akkuyu," the minister noted.

Bayraktar also mentioned that Turkiye will play a major role in not only Somalia but also in the nearby geography and in Syria achieving stability, and said that a team from Turkiye was in Damascus a short while ago and that Turkiye will continue to do its part there.

Bayraktar also stated that reducing energy costs and paid electricity and natural gas bills is their most basic duty.

"In this sense, the support we provide will continue. We want our citizens to be affected by changing prices in the world in the least way possible. Currently, we, as the state, support approximately 60 percent of the electricity and natural gas bills we pay in our homes. We will continue to do so," Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar concluded.

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