U.S. oil producer Continental Resources estimates a shale oil reserve of 6.1 billion barrels in Turkey’s southeastern Diyarbakır basin, according to Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar.
Continental Resources and the Turkish national oil company, Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO), signed a joint venture agreement in March to develop shale fields in the basin.
"Turkey’s current annual (crude) oil imports amount to 365 million barrels. So a 6.1 billion barrel reserve is a great figure," Bayraktar told reporters during a visit to southeast Turkey this week.
The minister previously heralded the March agreement as "a new era in local crude oil exploration," with Turkey viewing shale oil and gas discoveries as a key development. Bayraktar also said the country aims to produce shale gas from the northwestern Thrace region.
"Shale oil and gas could be a game changer," he said.