‘Turkish Path’ to help meet energy demand: Minister

Alparslan Bayraktar

Imagine a country that has historically found itself as the epicenter of all that comes as a blessing and a curse. A country that has hosted many emperors, civilizations, kings and khalifates. A country that has blended, maintained and carried culinary traces, anthropological expressions and hosts thousands of years of architectures from the birth of civilizations to the modern society it has evolved into today. A fusion of East and West, North and South. Antakya, which has possessed many historical and natural beauties since the Paleolithic Age, is home to Kurtuluş Street, known as “the world's first illuminated street”, and from there this geography has continued to build on its craftmanship and Technologies to illuminate the future generations.

Türkiye, a country where geography has a fine-lined relationship with destiny, today hosts a dynamic cross border interaction exceeding its traditional regional policy. From the first ignite at Kurtuluş Street, today our government has focused on, and continues to focus on policies that matter to its citizens the most, whilst also fine-dining with leading conversations with the key global actors. From the United Nations General Assembly 2025 to Moscow Energy Week 25, from COP29 to Istanbul Energy Forum, the challenge of being a proactive player between international platforms and the civilian population has never been on a greater but also fruit bearing scale.

The ‘Turkish Path’ is a phrase I attach to the hundreds of years of genetic buildup to the services and statesmanship this land has witnessed. Keeping the Human at the center of all our policies and politics, our vision to evolve into a regional and global energy player is the new reality we must face to observe and maintain regional stability and welfare. Post-war situations have shown us that today, energy is also a fundamental part of human rights, and the right to exist from the micro to the macro level. Our objective is simple: all people should access to electricity in a reliable, sustainable, and affordable way. Without electricity banking systems, the internet, mobile phones and batteries are null to use. This is a practice we overlook domestically and internationally. In a period of just over 6 months, with the support of our counterparts in Syria, Azerbaijan and Qatar, the Kilis-Aleppo Pipeline was up and running, and works to increase the electricity capacity in Syria continue.

Today, the electrification trend facilitates the ambitious targets set to reach carbon neutrality, whilst it also brings with it the great challenge of big data and artificial intelligence. No nuclear power plant can be seen as enough, no renewable energy investment is yet to accommodate for the fast-growing demand with the new kids on the block. That is why it is important to recognize the need for a parallel action plan. Türkiye anticipates faster-than-expected growth in energy demand. Therefore, we maintain an open-door policy toward all energy sources and uphold a principle of technology neutrality. In the last decade, Türkiye has increased its regasification capacity from 30mcm to 161 mcm, we have set a target to add 120GW of renewables to our energy mix, 20GW of nuclear is forecasted by mid-century, 15GW in large scale conventional reactors, and 5GW in Small Modular Reactors. Not only so, our offshore fleet, deep-sea drilling vessels, seismic vessels is now fourth largest in the world, we have strong and growing storage and LNG capacity which enhances supply diversity.

Türkiye remains a net energy importer overall, but rising Black Sea gas output, strong renewables growth, increasing electricity exports and LNG re-exports have expanded its role in regional energy trade and reduced import dependence. Today, energy is one of the fast-growing sectors in Türkiye, on the manufacturing side, increasing investment opportunities onshore and off shore. In recent years, foreign investments in the energy sector went has reached up to $100 billion, and every year we are introducing new tenders, new international joint projects not limited to Türkiye but also beyond through bilateral and multilateral – cooperation’s in different locations.

This is where the Turkish Path steps in, our policies allow us to conduct flexible, feasible and reliable energy routes domestically and internationally. Whilst we are increasing production in the Black Sea, we are coordinal in working with international partners in Hungary, Libya, Pakistan, Iraq, Somalia and many more.

The Turkish Path is more than a policy framework—it is a philosophy deeply rooted in the nation’s historical resilience, cultural fusion, and forward-looking pragmatism. We offer a space for everyone at the table, our win-win understanding in policy roots itself in the fundamental understanding that we need to make energy accessible, affordable and reliant, and this can only be achieved through increased cooperation and competitiveness. By embracing innovation and technological progress while preserving the human spirit at the core of its vision, Türkiye continues to redefine what it means to be both a nation of heritage and a beacon of modernity. The Turkish Path, therefore, is not merely a path—it is a testament to Türkiye’s enduring capacity to illuminate its own future, and that of the world around it.

Alparslan Bayraktar, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources