Turkey's energy watchdog: Russia cannot afford cutting gas sales

Energy Market Regulatory Board (EPDK) Vice Chairman Mehmet Ertürk said the Russian economy is extremely fragile, especially with the drop in crude oil prices, and cannot afford to cease natural gas sales to Turkey as it is one of the three main partners for its energy exports.

Stressing the high sanctions and fines included in energy supply agreements, Ertük said the agreements between Turkey and Russia are long-term. Moreover, such intergovernmental agreements come with serious sanctions and liabilities for both the seller and the buyer. Ertürk added that these liabilities cannot be easily waived. And even if Russia stops the delivery of natural gas to Turkey, Ertürk said it will be a dangerous blow to its economy in the long-term as well as will ruin its reliability among various European countries to which it provides natural gas, spoiling its global reputation. Last week, speaking on natural gas delivery, the CEO of Russian energy company, Gazprom, Alexey Miller said: "If Gazprom halts natural gas shipments to Turkey, its reputation in Turkey will be damaged. We hope that such a situation does not have to occur." Miller added that Turkey's new gas deal with Qatar is a political step taken to resolve such concerns.

Currently, Turkey imports natural gas from Russia, Iran and Azerbaijan and is considering securing natural gas supplies from Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan, which has large reserves. Reportedly, Turkey is in contact with Kazakhstan, and Kazakh and Turkmen gas might also be carried to the European market through Turkey. The tension between Turkey and Russia, which followed the downing of a Russian military jet by the Turkish Armed forces near the Syrian border, led to the emergence of a possibility of a trade crisis with Russia, which is Turkey's largest energy trade partner. Last year, Turkey purchased 27.4 billion cubic meters worth around $6.5 billion of natural gas from Russia's state-owned gas company Gazprom, which makes Turkey the biggest importer of Russian natural gas.