Gazprom's decision on Turkey: Will the natural gas hub project go ahead?

Russia's largest energy company, Gazprom, has abandoned its plan to establish a natural gas distribution hub in Turkey. The project, which the company had been pursuing to compensate for the massive losses it suffered in European markets following the war in Ukraine, has been canceled after a long period of evaluation. According to a report by Bloomberg citing company sources, the project has been largely shelved and is no longer on the active agenda.

EYES TURNED TO TURKEY AFTER THE UKRAINE WAR

Before the war, Gazprom was Europe's largest natural gas supplier. However, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the Nord Stream pipelines that transported gas to Germany were taken out of service.

Furthermore, it was announced that gas shipments via Ukraine would end as of 2024. These developments significantly reduced Gazprom's influence in Europe. The company had initiated a plan to turn Turkey into an energy hub to offset these losses.

TURKEY'S PIPELINE CAPACITY DEEMED INSUFFICIENT

According to sources who spoke to Bloomberg on condition of anonymity, Gazprom did not find the project sustainable after months of feasibility and technical review. It was noted that the existing capacity of the pipelines that would transport gas from Turkey to Bulgaria and Greece is insufficient and that this infrastructure would require significant investment. Some senior Gazprom executives had argued from the very beginning that the project had a low chance of success.

Another detail highlighted in the report is that the idea of establishing a gas hub in Turkey did not actually originate from Gazprom, but from political circles close to the Kremlin. When Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the project to the public in October 2024, it was suggested that Gazprom executives were caught unprepared by this statement and that there was confusion within the company. This situation indicates that the project lacked internal institutional support.

For Gazprom, which earned approximately 8 billion dollars per month through natural gas exports to Europe, a gas hub to be established via Turkey was seen as a strategic gateway for a comeback. However, with the shelving of the project, this goal has largely disappeared.