Throughout the month of April, Türkiye made significant progress on several of its visionary projects. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan participated in ceremonies, including those celebrating the commissioning of the TCG Anadolu ship and the launching of the observation satellite IMECE, as well as the delivery of Togg's T10X model and the delivery of Black Sea gas to land.
Here are some of these developments that mark important milestones for Türkiye's ambitious plans for growth and modernization.
April 3
A ceremony was held at the Presidential Complex for the delivery of the T10X model of Türkiye’s first national and fully electric car, Togg.
Erdoğan, accompanied by first lady Emine Erdoğan, was delivered Togg’s EV model T10X in a ceremony at the Presidential Complex in the capital Ankara.
Their fully electric C-segment SUV features the "Anadolu" color, inspired by red, reflecting Anatolian lands’ sincerity and passion.
"Today, we are witnessing together the realization of the 60-year dream of our nation," Erdoğan said at the ceremony.
Having had its mass production launched in late October, Togg said T10X would be initially sold with one engine and two battery options.
The model will feature battery packs with capacities of 52.4 and 88.5 kilowatt-hours, boasting ranges of 314 and 523 kilometers (195 and 325 miles), respectively.
Besides the SUV, Togg will manufacture another four models – a sedan, C-hatchback, B-SUV, and B-MPV – by 2030. The sedan will follow the mass production of the SUV.
April 10
In a historic milestone, Türkiye commissioned its long-anticipated largest warship, the TCG Anadolu, bolstering its naval capabilities and making the country one of the few nations in the world with a domestically built aircraft carrier.
Set to be Türkiye’s flagship, the multipurpose amphibious assault ship TCG Anadolu represents a symbol in the "Century of Türkiye," Erdoğan said, addressing the delivery ceremony in Istanbul.
More than Türkiye’s first aircraft carrier, the ship will also be the world’s first vessel with an air wing mainly consisting of unmanned aircraft.
Based on Spain’s Juan Carlos I, the TCG Anadolu is a landing helicopter dock (LHD) type amphibious assault ship. It is 231 meters (758 feet) long and 32 meters wide and boasts a displacement of 27,436 tons. It has a top speed of around 21 knots, a range of 9,000 nautical miles and can operate at sea for 50 days.
The ship was ordered in 2015, laid down in February 2018 and launched in April 2019. Its inauguration was scheduled for 2021 but has been delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Erdoğan said 70% of the parts used in TCG Anadolu's construction were made in Türkiye, stressing that the government would "introduce more advanced technologies that are more domestic and national to our country."
The president also vowed to continue the profound transformation that Türkiye has undergone in the defense industry in the last two decades through innovative engineering initiatives and domestically developed technologies.
April 15
Türkiye successfully launched its new and first indigenous high-resolution Earth observation satellite IMECE into space.
The Turkish-made pioneering satellite was blasted off early on Saturday from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in the U.S. state of California at 6:48 a.m. GMT.
The launch marks the first time that Türkiye will have an electro-optical satellite camera with sub-meter resolution in orbit.
The IMECE's orbit will be sun-synchronous at an altitude of 680 kilometers (422.5 miles) and serve in the areas of defense, disaster management, environment and urbanization, and agriculture and forestry.
April 17
The country inaugurated a long-awaited vast business district that promises to place the Turkish metropolis among the world’s most important financial centers.
A ceremony led by Erdoğan marked the gradual launch of the Istanbul Finance Center (IFC), starting with the launch of the section hosting banks.
The IFC could help the metropolis form ties with financial markets in the world, said Erdoğan. "This center will create a new financial ecosystem in Istanbul, which is the meeting point of two continents," he noted.
The IFC will boast most of the country’s most prominent institutions started in 2009 and is being developed in the Ümraniye district on the city’s Anatolian part.
It aims to make Istanbul a competitive destination for international financial institutions and investors and to support the growth of the Turkish economy.
April 20
Within the framework of the Sakarya Gas Field Development Project carried out by the Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO), a ceremony was held for the delivery of the 710 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas discovered in the Black Sea to the grid in the 2020-2022 period.
Erdoğan signaled the first delivery to an onshore plant, which will begin with 10 million cubic meters (mcm) of gas daily in the first phase.
"This is a historic milestone for Türkiye's path to energy independence," Erdoğan told the ceremony held in northern Zonguldak province broadcasted live on television.
Production will be increased to 40 million cubic meters of gas per day in the coming period, the president said, after other wells go into operation.
"When we reach full capacity, we will meet 30% of our country's gas needs" from the Black Sea reserves, he said.
In August 2020, the country discovered a reserve off the coast of Zonguldak, which Erdoğan hailed as a way to wean the country off its dependence on energy imports.
Erdoğan announced that the country's first drilling vessel Fatih had discovered 320 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas in the Tuna-1 well in the Sakarya gas field.
The discovery went down to history as the largest gas discovery ever in Türkiye's history, which thereafter only went on to be gradually revised upward.
In late December 2022, the reserve was eventually predicted to hold around 710 bcm of gas, the increase that Erdoğan said came mainly from the Sakarya field, where reserves are now seen at 652 bcm and another 58 bcm found in an offshore field nearby.
According to experts, 10 million cubic meters of gas per day in the first phase would meet around 6% of Türkiye's annual consumption, which stands at 60 bcm.
It will deliver a boost to the economy and cover a significant part of Türkiye’s energy needs, reducing its dependence on foreign sources while strengthening its hand on contracts with major gas-supplying countries.
April 23
Türkiye’s army has received what officials dubbed one of the most modern main battle tanks (MBTs) in the world that will undergo testing in the period ahead before the country launches its mass production and deliveries.
Two long-anticipated domestically built Altay tanks were delivered to the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) in a ceremony led by Erdoğan, who praised Türkiye’s current capability of meeting almost all of its land vehicle needs with domestic resources.
The final trials of the Altay tank are expected to be completed within 2024. Its mass production will be launched in 2025, and South Korean-made power packs will power the first tanks.
The military vehicle manufacturer BMC plans to replace South Korean engines with a domestically developed version in 2026. Türkiye is developing a 1,500-horsepower engine, BATU, to power various armored vehicles, including the Altay.
The new tank has undergone significant overhauls since its first design in the 2000s, according to Erdoğan, who stressed multiple obstacles and challenges faced in developing and manufacturing the vehicle.
"Our new Altay tank has very different and superior capabilities from the prototype that was first put forward 10 years ago," Erdoğan told the delivery ceremony in the northwestern Sakarya province.
"Like our other defense projects, we have faced many difficulties in the development process of the Altay tank. Our project was tried to be blocked," he added.
April 27
Türkiye gained the status of a country boasting nuclear energy, as its first plant, the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant (NPP), received the initial batch of nuclear fuel with a ceremony.
The ceremony, which granted the joint Russian-Turkish project Akkuyu "nuclear" plant status, the first for Türkiye, was attended by Erdoğan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin via videoconference.
With the delivery of nuclear fuels via air and sea, the Akkuyu power plant has become a nuclear facility, Erdoğan said at the ceremony.
"Türkiye has risen to the league of countries with nuclear power in the world, albeit after a 60-year delay," the president said.
The plant will be fully operational by 2028 and supply 10% of Türkiye’s electricity consumption, the president also said, noting that the Akkuyu project will contribute $1.5 billion (TL 29.15 billion) annually to decrease Türkiye's natural gas imports and will have a "positive impact" national income.