A natural gas supply agreement between Azerbaijan and Türkiye, which was due to expire at the end of this year, has been extended until the end of 2030, the Turkish energy minister confirmed Tuesday.
Turkish Petroleum Pipeline Corporation (BOTAŞ), Azerbaijan's state energy company SOCAR, and Azerbaijan Gas Supply Company (AGSC) signed the deal on natural gas supply and exchange on June 4 at the start of the 29th International Caspian Oil & Gas Exhibition during Baku Energy Week, which runs between June 4-6.
Energy and Natural Resources Minister Aparslan Bayraktar and Azerbaijani Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov participated in a signing ceremony for the natural gas agreement extension.
BOTAŞ and SOCAR also signed four agreements on the delivery and exchange of natural gas.
"With the four agreements signed between BOTAŞ and SOCAR, Azerbaijani gas will be transported to Europe and Nakhchivan via Türkiye, and Turkmenistan gas will be delivered to our country," Bayraktar said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
"We also signed the extension of the natural gas supply agreement between BOTAŞ and AGSC, which will expire this year, until the end of 2030. I hope these agreements will be beneficial for the two brotherly countries," he added.
Speaking during the 29th International Caspian Oil and Gas Exhibition, Bayraktar recalled that with the agreement signed with the Azerbaijani Economy Ministry last month, they decided to cooperate in increasing the natural gas supply to the Turkish market and European countries via Türkiye, in addition to agreeing on the natural gas shipment to Azerbaijan's autonomous region of Nakhchivan.
"This morning, we finalized the basic commercial agreements and signed it," he said.
Pointing out the importance of strong regional cooperation for energy security, Bayraktar said, "Our region has abundant energy resources, including oil, natural gas and renewable energy."
"By working together and creating synergy, we can use these resources more effectively and ensure the benefits are widely shared."
The minister stated that the relations between Türkiye and Azerbaijan are a good example of the benefits of close cooperation, highlighting the bond between countries based on common history, culture and strategic interests.
"The energy sector has been one of the cornerstones of our bilateral relations, exemplified by landmark projects such as the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Crude Oil Pipeline and the Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP), which are very important for the global oil market," he noted.
Emphasizing that the Southern Gas Corridor, in particular, is proof of the power of regional cooperation, he said that this strategic initiative has not only increased the energy security of Türkiye but also of Europe and at the same time "has also strengthened the economic and geopolitical ties between our countries."
Reiterating the gas agreements signed, including gas shipment to Nakhcivan and cooperation on gas supply to the Turkish market and Europe via Türkiye, Bayrakar said, "We work closely with the Azerbaijani Energy Ministry to increase the electricity interconnection capacities between Türkiye and Nakhchivan."
"With the completion of these investments, more green electricity will be available, produced and transported," he said.
The minister also delivered a message from President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who emphasized that as in every field, Türkiye and Azerbaijan have strong relations in the field of energy as well.
"Our cooperation, which dates back many years and has been crowned with infrastructure investments such as Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan, Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum pipelines and TANAP, has not only benefited Türkiye and Azerbaijan but has also made significant contributions to the energy security of the region and Europe," Erdoğan said.
"It is now only a matter of time to transfer the gas produced in Turkmenistan to Türkiye and Europe with our joint efforts and to expand the capacity of TANAP," he added.
"The fact that our work on these issues will bear fruit very soon will undoubtedly be another common success for Türkiye and Azerbaijan," he said.
Expressing they wish to see the Turkic world further advance and deepen cooperation in the fields of politics, economy, trade, security, military, defense industry, transportation, health, education, culture and energy, Erdoğan said, "I would like to take this opportunity to state that I am pleased that the next summit of the Organization of Turkic States will be held in Shusha next month, hosted by Azerbaijan."
"The sixfold capacity increase in freight transportation that will be achieved with the completion of the modernization works of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway, which is the backbone of the Central Corridor that brings the historical Silk Road to life on rails, and its full operation again, has a strategic importance in terms of the development of the regional transportation network," he said.
"In renewable energy, new technologies, and energy resource diversification, we are consolidating our cooperation as two countries. We aim to complete the electricity export through Nakhchivan and the Iğdır-Nakhchivan Natural Gas Pipeline projects as soon as possible."