Important energy issues were discussed in depth at the First Energy and Mining Forum organized by Turkuvaz Media Group outlets. Experts and industry leaders on the panels at the one-day forum said that 2018 will see major breakthroughs in Turkey's energy industry.

The First Turkey Energy and Mining Forum: The Year of Opportunity 2018, organized in cooperation with Sabah, A Haber, Takvim, Yeni Asır and Para magazine under the auspicious of the Energy and Natural Resources Ministry, focused on various strategic issues with five panels, which asserted that 2018 will be a year of important breakthroughs in energy.

The main sponsors of the forum, which was held with the participation of pioneering figures from the industry, were Akfen Enerji, Boydak Enerji, Çalık Enerji, IC Holding, Limak Enerji, Sabancı Holding, Turkish Airlines (THY) and Türk Telekom, as well as Koza, Karadeniz Holding, Başkent Gaz, Investment Support and Promotion Agency of Turkey (ISPAT), Enerya, FINA Enerji, Polyak Eynez and Shell. The panel on natural gas security were sponsored by İGDAŞ.

Sabah's Economy Manager Şeref Oğuz emphasized the possibility of domestic and renewable energy on the panel, Turkey's Model in Renewable Energy: Technology Transfer and the Future of the YEKA Model. "With the 11th Five-Year Development Plan, Turkey is turning into a country making the rules for the first time rather than a country following the rules," Oğuz said. Director General of Renewable Energy Oğuz Can said investors continue investing without no loss of appetite. Akfen Chairman Hamdi Akın said energy companies could go public. Siemens Renewable Energy CEO Hakan Yıldırım addressed a change in the wind and Kalyon Energy CEO Murtaza Ata pointed to the importance of independent resources in energy.

The Digitalization in Energy and Customer Satisfaction panel, moderated by AHaber Economy Manager Özlem Doğaner, said that the leakage rate in Turkey dropped to around 13 percent and that it will soon reach single digits. "In four years, Turkey's grid will become better than many European countries with the exception of just a few," Doğaner said.

Energy Market Regulatory Authority (EMRA) Vice President Mehmet Ertürk said digitalization in energy gained momentum after the privatization process. ELDER Chairman Serhat Çeçen said they try to make many technological investments in the sector. "EMRA's roadmap is guiding us. We will continue our investments with our 21 distribution companies," he added.

The Financing of Energy Investments panel, moderated by the Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research (SETA) Research Director Hasan Basri Yalçın focused on the need for energy loans of 25 billion euros until 2023. Halkbank Deputy General Manager Hasan Tuncay said they provided TL 15 billion ($3.97 billion) in energy loans and EY Energy Leader Erkan Baykuş reported that energy financing reached $180 billion in the world.

The A New Era in Natural Gas Security and LNG market panel, moderated by Sabah columnist Kerem Alkın, said that natural gas has reached almost all of Turkey's districts. Shell Turkey Country Chair Ahmet Erdem said gas has 55 percent in the investments of the major companies. "We will bring natural gas to 223 districts in 2019," Turkey's Petroleum Pipeline Corporation (BOTAŞ) General Manager Burhan Özcan said.

Moderated by ATV Ankara representative and Takvim columnist Şebnem Bursalı, the New Model in Turkish Mining: R&D and Security Culture panel concentrated on cooperation between the state and the private sector. General Directorate of Mining Affairs (MIGEM) General Manager Mithat Cansız said the sector could now be audited once every three months. Lidya Madencilik General Manager Mustafa Aksoy said they have invested $1.2 billion in Erzincan and TÜBRAG Chairman Mehmet Yılmaz addressed occupational safety.