ISTANBUL 

Türkiye will receive 1.4 billion cubic meters of gas from Oman annually under a new contract that will be valid for the next 10 years, the country's energy and natural resources minister announced on Monday.

The new gas purchase agreement with Oman also includes an opportunity to be extended further if needed, Fatih Donmez said in his opening speech at the Summit of Century of Türkiye in Energy organized for the first time in Istanbul.

"At a time when the world, especially Europe, is suffering from gas supply problems, Türkiye is taking all steps to become a gas trade center," he said.

Donmez also declared that Türkiye's third floating liquefied natural gas storage and regasification unit (FSRU) is projected to arrive in Türkiye within a week and that the ship has taken its first cargo and started sailing.

The ship will serve at the Saros FSRU terminal, which will also give the country the flexibility to carry out LNG transport, especially during the summer season when the demand to pump gas into the system is low.

"With the Saros FSRU, we will be adding a new entry point to the Thrace region, where consumption is high. More importantly, we will become a more active player in the regional gas trade, especially in the Balkans, in line with our gas hub target," he suggested.

The first step, he said, was taken with Bulgaria in this context, as the agreement includes an annual gas supply of approximately 1.5 billion cubic meters to Bulgaria until 2035, corresponding to 30% of the country's annual gas consumption.

"In addition to Bulgaria, we are carrying out similar processes with North Macedonia, Romania, and Moldova," Donmez said.

Istanbul to gather producing, consuming countries next month

Donmez emphasized that their next goal is to bring producing and consuming countries together and to make Türkiye a gas hub where the reference gas price is determined.

For that aim, the Istanbul Gas Summit will be organized on Feb. 14-15 with the motto of Securing the Future Together.

Along with the energy ministers, the summit is expected to host high-level representatives of public institutions and organizations, the private sector, and international energy organizations.

The summit will discuss the effects of global developments on the energy sector, changes in supply and demand and pricing, and global supply security issues, Donmez concluded.