Is energy the cause of asymmetric attacks on Turkey? - YENI ŞAFAK

29 December 2016
Erdal Tanas Karagöl

The 21st century is the century of natural gas. Many countries with natural gas resources are located in the north, east and south of Turkey. Therefore, Turkey is a country that has strategic significance in energy.

Turkey stands out in the energy field in its region, as it is a bridge between hydrocarbon reserves in the Middle East, the Caspian region and the Mediterranean, and European countries, the largest consuming countries, and as it ensures its own energy supply security.

Turkey's strategic position among countries that have natural gas resources and that consume natural gas offers significant advantages in terms of being both a corridor and a trade center in energy. For the first time, Turkey is at the point of turning the cost it has shouldered in this region for years into an advantage.

Turkey to start using local currency in energy trade, Energy Minister Albayrak says - DAILY SABAH

December 8, 2016

Energy and Natural Resources Minister Berat Albayrak released important messages in a speech during budget talks at the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TBMM) on Thursday. He said that Turkey has entered a "new era" in its energy policy, in which it will use Turkish lira in future trade with countries where it has a large volume of energy transactions.

According to the information obtained after Albayrak spoke about using the lira in financing giant-energy projects, it was said that the first move in that direction was taken with Russia. Turkey has taken the initiative to use local currency in the trade of natural gas with Russia. Meanwhile, Anadolu Agency (AA) reported that the Russian energy company Gazprom and the Swiss Alleseas Company signed an agreement to build the first pipeline of the Turkish Stream natural gas pipeline project. According to the agreement, the company will lay a total of 900 kilometers (560 miles) of pipeline in the Black Sea, with the construction set to begin in the second half of 2017.