With the onset of colder weather across Türkiye, the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources has taken proactive measures to secure the nation's energy needs.

The Silivri and Lake Tuz underground natural gas storage facilities have been filled to their full capacity, guaranteeing a secure energy supply for the country ahead of winter.

At the Lake Tuz Natural Gas Storage Facility in central Aksaray province, 1.2 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas have been stored within the 12 artificial caves brought into operation.

Once this facility reaches its maximum capacity, it will be capable of satisfying approximately 50% of Türkiye's residential natural gas consumption.

Simultaneously, the capacity of the Silivri Natural Gas Storage Facility has been expanded to 4.6 bcm, solidifying its position as Türkiye's premier gas storage facility.

The storage facility situated in the Tuz Gölü (Lake Tuz), managed by the Petroleum Pipeline Corporation (BOTAŞ), currently holds 1.2 bcm of natural gas within its underground caves. The introduction of new storage areas in the second phase of development will see this capacity rise to 5.4 bcm.

As part of the storage project featuring 52 caverns formed by dissolving salt in the salt wells opened at a depth of 1.5 kilometers (0.93 miles), fresh water is injected into underground wells to dissolve the salt. The freshwater, brought from Hirfanlı Dam to dissolve the salt in the underground wells, is pumped into Lake Tuz as saline water after the process.

Like this, the water levels in the lake replenish consistently, contributing to the revival of the local basin.

With the second stage entering effect, the number of caves will reach 52 and an additional 40 caves will be created for storing gas.

The natural gas storage capacity will surge to 5.4 bcm with a daily production capacity of 80 million cubic meters (mcm).

These two storage facilities, once at full capacity, can ensure Türkiye can meet its annual natural gas consumption for households.

The Silivri Natural Gas Storage Project, known as Türkiye's first gas storage facility and dubbed as Europe's largest, currently boasts a capacity of 4.6 bcm and plays a critical role in securing Türkiye's energy needs.