Turkiye's energy minister lands in Islamabad

• Turkiye’s energy minister leading high-level delegation. 
• Turkiye to sign accord for Pakistan’s first deep-sea drilling project. 
• Visit to advance bilateral ties in energy, mining sector, says Malik.

ISLAMABAD: Turkiye’s Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Alparslan Bayraktar, landed in Islamabad on Monday, as Pakistan seeks to bolster and expand bilateral collaboration in the sectors of energy, petroleum, and mineral exploration.

The minister was formally received at the airport by Pakistan’s Federal Petroleum Minister, Ali Pervaiz Malik, along with the Turkish Ambassador to Pakistan, Irfan Neziroglu, and other senior executives.

The Turkish minister is leading a high-level delegation to Pakistan. The visiting dignitary last week said that Turkiye planned to formalise a new energy deal with Pakistan covering oil and gas exploration both on land and at sea.

“We’re preparing to sign our accord for Pakistan’s first deep-sea drilling project,” he told Lider Haber. “Our cooperation will begin with exploration work in two onshore blocks and one offshore zone."

Meantime, Malik held a meeting yesterday with the ambassador of Turkiye to Pakistan, Irfan Neziroglu, to finalise preparations for the high-level Turkish delegation. Secretary Petroleum Momin Agha and Managing Director OGDCL Ahmed Hayat Lak were also present during the meeting.

During the discussion, Malik said, “We are looking forward to welcoming the Turkish Minister and his team to Pakistan. Their visit will play a transformational role in advancing our bilateral cooperation in energy and mining sector.”

The meeting reviewed the expanding collaboration between the two countries in the energy, petroleum, and mineral sectors. It was noted with satisfaction that Turkish Petroleum has joined offshore and onshore exploration activities in Pakistan, marking a major milestone in bilateral energy cooperation.

The ambassador further shared that a leading Turkish mineral sector company was part of the delegation, reflecting Turkiye’s strong interest in investing and partnering in Pakistan’s mineral development sector.

Minister Malik highlighted that Pakistan’s leading exploration companies, OGDCL and PPL, Mari Energies, have joined Turkish Petroleum (TPAO), which is creating new opportunities for joint ventures and strengthening cooperation on the global stage.

Ambassador Neziroglu reaffirmed Turkiye’s commitment to its partnership with Pakistan, noting that there are “many promising areas of cooperation between the two brotherly countries,” and expressed confidence that the visit will “further cement and deepen Pak Turkiye relations.”

Both sides expressed their resolve to ensure the successful conduct of the visit and to translate mutual goodwill into meaningful economic and strategic outcomes.

Pak-Turk ties deeper than ever before: Bayraktar

The esteemed visitor, in a write-up published in The News in April this year, had said: "Turkish-Pakistani energy relations have dived into a deeper route than ever before. From deep-sea drilling and seismic research to know-how transfer in critical minerals and electricity production."

"On my recent trip, it was an honourable experience to meet with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and sign off on the Memorandum of Understanding where Turkish Petroleum will jointly bid with the national oil companies of Pakistan in the Indus offshore basin," he noted.

"We look forward to this exciting opportunity that will open doors to decades long partnerships."

The honourable guest looks forward to strengthening the bilateral ties even further. He said, "But we are not limited to oil and gas, Turkiye and Pakistan are also working together in know-how transfer for critical minerals."

"Both countries have significant reserves and the development of these sites will offer a strategic value chain benefiting both nations," he noted.

"Similar to the gold rush of the mid-19th century, we now live in the age of ‘critical minerals rush’. Nations that control the supply of their critical minerals, including rare earth elements, will hold the competitive advantage."