Executive Information Note | March 2025
Overview
Türkiye occupies a strategic position at the crossroads of major energy-producing regions—the Caspian Basin, the Middle East, and Russia—and energy-consuming markets in Europe. This geographic advantage gives Türkiye a potentially important role as both a transit corridor and an emerging energy hub linking Asia and Europe. This fact sheet summarizes the current state of Türkiye-Asia energy cooperation by highlighting major infrastructure projects, recent trade data, geopolitical strengths and vulnerabilities, and key policy developments.
1. Key Energy Projects
The following table presents the major energy infrastructure projects connecting Türkiye with Asian energy-producing regions.
Project; Type; Partners; Capacity; Status; Strategic Importance
TANAP (TransAnatolian Pipeline) Natural Gas Azerbaijan, Türkiye 16 BCM/year (expandable to 31 BCM/year) Operational (since 2018) Core segment of the Southern Gas Corridor; delivers Azerbaijani gas to Türkiye and onward to Europe
TAP (Trans Adriatic Pipeline) Natural Gas Azerbaijan, Greece, Albania, Italy 10 BCM/year (expandable to 20 BCM/year) Operational (since 2020) Connects TANAP to European markets and strengthens non-Russian supply routes
TurkStream Natural Gas Russia, Türkiye 31.5 BCM/year (2 lines) Operational (since 2020) Bypasses Ukraine and supplies both Türkiye and Southeast European markets
BTC (BakuTbilisiCeyhan) Crude Oil Azerbaijan, Georgia, Türkiye 1.2 million bpd Operational (since 2006) Major Caspian oil export route to the Mediterranean, bypassing Russia and the Turkish Straits
KirkukCeyhan Pipeline Crude Oil Iraq, Türkiye 1.6 million bpd (design capacity) Operational intermittently Strategic export route for Iraqi oil, though frequently disrupted by legal and security disputes
Trans-Caspian Pipeline Natural Gas Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, EU 30 BCM/year (proposed) Planned / under discussion Would connect Turkmengas to the Southern Gas Corridor and reduce dependence on Russian transit routes
Project; Type; Partners; Capacity; Status; Strategic Importance
Iraq-Türkiye Gas Pipeline Natural Gas Iraq (KRG), Türkiye 10–20 BCM/year (proposed) Planned Could diversify Türkiye’s supply base and strengthen links with northern Iraq, but remains constrained by regional insecurity
Sources: International Energy Agency (2024); Turkish Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources (2024); BOTAŞ (2024).
2. Energy Trade Data (2020–2024)
Türkiye’s Natural Gas Imports by Source (2023)
Source; Volume (BCM); Share (%)
Russia 21.3 42%
Azerbaijan 10.2 20%
Iran 5.4 11%
LNG (various suppliers) 13.8 27%
Total 50.7 100%
Source: Turkish Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources; International Energy Agency (2024).