The pro-government newspaper Sabah reports that work has begun on the construction of a natural gas pipeline that will connect Turkey with the occupied territories.

According to the report, the pipeline will have a total length of 101 kilometers, 97 kilometers of which will be underwater, while its annual capacity will reach 10 billion cubic meters of natural gas.

Sabah reports that in the first phase, the pipeline will transport natural gas from Turkey to the occupied territories, while in a second phase it could be used in reverse, so that potential natural gas reserves from the Eastern Mediterranean could be channeled through Turkey to European markets.

The pseudo-state’s “Minister of Economy and Energy,” Olgun Amcaoğlu, argued that the project would strengthen the energy security of the occupied territories and make them part of the Eastern Mediterranean’s energy equation.

At the same time, he reiterated Turkey’s long-standing positions on the Cyprus issue, arguing that future energy cooperation can only take place if, as he claimed, “sovereign equality” and the rights of Turkish Cypriots are guaranteed.

Citing recent statements by Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar, he noted that, should exploitable reserves be discovered in the Eastern Mediterranean, they could be transported via the same pipeline to Turkey and from there to Europe.

In the same article, the director of the Oil and Natural Gas Division at the Mediterranean Energy and Climate Organization, Sochbet Karbuz, estimates that this specific route could be the most economical and geographically advantageous option for transporting natural gas from the Eastern Mediterranean to Europe, while also helping to reduce Europe’s dependence on the LNG market.

Source: CNA