Ankara is working to have a ‘road map’ before the end of the year to turn Turkey into a gas ‘hub’

Nov. 8 (EUROPA PRESS) –

Turkish Energy Minister Fatih Donmez assured on Tuesday that, before the end of the year, the government led by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will draw up its own ‘road map’ to turn Turkey into a gas ‘hub’.

Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed in mid-October to redirect the volume of gas from Turkey to third countries, mainly European, due to the impossibility of using the Nord Stream gas pipelines. This opens the possibility of building new stretches of gas infrastructure in the country.

“Turkey will not only be the region and the center where the gas will be marketed. It will also be a distribution center,” he said during an interview with the TRT Haber television channel, adding that the country “is in a very strategic place.” in terms of “its geopolitical and geographical position”.

Likewise, the Turkish Energy Minister has specified that this ‘hub’ or gas distribution center will be located mainly in the Thrace region, where “many pipes enter” and there is “great potential” due to its location.

Thus, Donmez explained that the objective of the Turkish Government is “to create a transparent, safe market where everyone can agree with a ‘win-win’ logic”, adding that, within the European market, Turkey “has assumed roles that will strengthen their security of supply”.

Beyond Europe, Ankara has also been willing to maintain commercial relations with other Asian countries, such as Malaysia, or even with the Gulf countries. “We have a pipeline that goes to the Iraqi border. It could be a new alternative. When you look at it as liquefied natural gas, we have a lot of flexibility. The Gulf countries, namely the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Oman, can send gas. Already that we are holding talks,” he said.

On the other hand, Donmez has confirmed that Ankara has begun to pay “partially” for Russian gas in rubles, as Erdogan himself announced last August, when he confirmed, after a visit to Russia, that he was going to trade a part of its imports with this currency.