Turkey expands oil and gas drilling in the Black Sea

Athens is closely monitoring Turkey’s expansion of its hydrocarbon exploration and extraction capabilities in various maritime areas. Turkey has focused its efforts on gas and oil exploration in the Black Sea, where its fleet of drilling rigs, including the latest seventh-generation "Abdulhamid Han," is currently active.

Additionally, the Turkish Petroleum Corporation is enhancing its hydrocarbon storage and offloading capabilities. In 2023, TPAO purchased a Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) unit from a Norwegian company, which recently set sail from Singapore to Istanbul, bypassing the Suez Canal due to security concerns in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

The FPSO unit will undergo modifications in Istanbul before being deployed in the Black Sea, likely at the Sakarya field. This increased activity in the Black Sea aligns with Turkey’s growing energy demands amid broader economic challenges.

Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar has prioritized the Black Sea, followed by the Eastern Mediterranean and the Aegean. Athens notes that a potential return of Turkey to Eastern Mediterranean exploration could occur if tensions between Greece and Turkey escalate. Recent tensions near Kasos, though unrelated to exploration, underscore the volatility in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Athens is also attentive to Turkey’s plans for exploration in Libya and off the coast of Somalia. However, discussions with authorities that do not fully represent their countries suggest that Turkey’s announcements may be driven more by political motives than actual exploration prospects.

[Summary of Vasilis Nedos' original story in Greek published in Kathimerini's Greece edition]