TPAO to Drill for Gas in Sea of Marmara

Turkey's state upstream operator TPAO is to drill for gas in the Sea of Marmara, according to documents seen by NGW. The company has submitted an environmental impact assessment (EIA) to Turkey's environment ministry to drill in the 2081-km² block G20-A offshore from Silivri, around 70 km to the west of Istanbul.

The project involves the initial drilling of one exploration well, dubbed Gumuskaya-1, to a depth of 1650 metres in water of 45 metres. The EIA consultation process has yet to be completed but for hydrocarbon exploration projects this is generally considered a formality. 

TPAO was awarded exploration rights for block G20-A in 2016. The company also holds exploration rights for blocks G19-A, G19-B, G20-B, G20-C and G20-D and earlier this year applied for exploration rights for block G19-C. The company has previously produced small volumes of gas from the north Marmara gas field, now part of Botas' Marmara underground gas storage facility.