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Turkey is preparing to deploy a third drill ship as part of its search for hydrocarbons, Energy Minister Fatih Dönmez said in a tweet on Thursday.
“The Kanuni period begins in our seas. Kanuni will sail from Taşucu Port on Oct. 10” the Dönmez said, referring to the Kanuni drillship purchased by the Turkish Petroleum Company in February.
Kanuni is set to be deployed to the Black Sea, where it will begin drilling in the recently discovered Sakarya gas field.
The Turkish government hailed the find in August as a game changer for a country heavily reliant on energy imports. But experts have cast doubt over the commercial viability of the project.
Kanuni, named in reference to Ottoman Sultan Suleiman I, was originally reported to be making preparations to sail to the eastern Mediterranean, where Turkey has previously deployed two other drill ships, known as Fatih and Yavuz, as it seeks to assert authority over natural gas reserves also claimed by Greece and Cyprus.
However, pressure from the European Union and the United States saw Turkey pull back from the disputed waters earlier this month. Attention has since returned to the Black Sea, where Turkey is the sole claimant.
