Turkey regional gas hub could be operational in 2025, minister says
ANKARA, Nov 1 (Reuters) - Turkey's talks with Russia to strike a deal on a gas trading hub are ongoing and the hub in Istanbul could begin operations in 2025, the Turkish energy minister said.
Turkey, which has announced its ambition to become a gas hub by increasing both imports and exports, is in the process of negotiating supply deals with producers and consumers.
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"We have set up a strong infrastructure for a trading platform that could operate as soon as 2025 in Istanbul Finance Centre under the partnership of Botas and Gazprom," Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said in an interview with Turkish daily Milliyet published on Friday.
"We sent (Russia) a memorandum of understanding," Bayraktar said, adding that Russian president Vladimir Putin told his Turkish counterpart Tayyip Erdogan that he'd give instructions to Gazprom for the gas hub.
"There will be an Istanbul Gas Index. That means gas prices will be determined in Istanbul... Russia will sell its gas with a price based on Istanbul Gas Index," Bayraktar said.
Russia in 2022 proposed setting up a gas hub in Turkey to replace lost sales to Europe, playing into Ankara's long-held desire to function as an exchange for energy-starved countries.
(Reporting by Can Sezer, Writing by Huseyin Hayatsever; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)