Talks and efforts are ongoing to try to reverse the halt in natural gas flows from Iran, Turkey’s energy minister said late Monday, as the stoppage of the supplies threatened to severely hit manufacturing and exports.
A delegation, which is said to include a deputy minister and officials from state-run pipeline company BOTAŞ, has flown to Tehran to address the issue, Energy and Natural Resources Minister Fatih Dönmez told an interview with private broadcaster Habertürk.
Iran last week announced it would suspend gas exports to its neighbor for 10 days due to what it said were technical failures, putting enormous pressure on the power network in Turkey.
"We are undertaking all efforts possible to solve the problem. That’s what we also conveyed to the other side (Iran)," Dönmez said, also categorically rebuffing allegations the halt was due to Turkey’s debt to Iran.
"We certainly do not owe Iran anything. Such a statement has not been made from the opposite side either," he said.
Dönmez said maintenance teams have been deployed to address the problem and ensure that supplies are not adversely affected, stressing that the suppliers had reset the flow on Jan. 21 following a leak in the Iranian gas system.
Turkey earlier denied that the problem was due to a fault at a pressure station on its side.
Iran’s Oil Minister Javad Owji said at the weekend that Turkey had urged Iran to continue gas exports and postpone repair operations.
"But considering that it was risky and could cause incidents, we had no other choice but to bring down the (gas) pressure and exports," Owji told local media.
"Based on our contract and safety issues, we have to fix the leak at the first possible opportunity. But the cold weather made us postpone it for a few days. This problem definitely needs to be resolved while we see this as a matter of principle," he added.
The limited supply, along with high demand in household gas use due to colder-than-normal weather, have forced BOTA%u015E to order industrial sites and power plants to slash gas use and the government to impose three days of power cuts in organized industrial zones.
More than half of Turkey’s electricity is produced in gas-powered plants and manufacturers, particularly automakers, warned the outage would hit output and exports, as some companies temporarily halted production as of Monday.
BOTAŞ on Monday announced an exemption for companies making essential goods including medicines, milk and meat products.
"Our priority is supplying households and workplaces, especially office spaces, as we do not want them to be without gas in these cold winter conditions," Dönmez said.
He explained that the supplier has to fulfill obligations on delivery volumes and conditions for gas pressure under the written contract, which he said, has been relayed to the other party.
He reassured that the country is not without a plan to deal with such challenges, with gas storage facilities at full capacity to cope with the higher consumption rates.
Nonetheless, he said that the current consumption in 73 out of the 81 provinces is unprecedented.
"We have not had any problems with energy withdrawal from our critical production facilities in cities, especially for household consumption or for the manufacturing sector," the minister noted.
However, to ensure no critical shortages, he said discussions took place with key organizations in the industrial sector on short-term cutbacks.
"Some of the industrialists wanted to stop at full capacity for a few days and then work. Some companies have energy-intensive processes, such as furnaces. We need to supply gas and electricity at a minimum level for them," Dönmez explained.
Industry and Technology Minister Mustafa Varank on Monday said that the manufacturing sector should be able to weather the drop in production due to power cuts.
"The industrial sector is strong enough to overcome this period that will last for a few days," Varank said.
Turkey is almost fully dependent on imported gas from Russia, Azerbaijan and Iran. According to the latest official data, Iran alone provided 16% of Turkey’s natural gas needs in the first 10 months of 2021.
Energy prices have risen sharply in Turkey, driven by global increases and a 44% decline in the lira’s value against the dollar last year.
Electricity prices were raised as much as 125% for high-demand commercial users this month and by around 50% for lower-demand households.
