The first Black Sea deep-water natural gas discovery was made in Romania’s Exclusive Economic Zone in 2012. Although, the commerciality of the Romania’s Neptun block is still under discussion, the recent news from the Turkish exploration well, Tuna-1, caused a stir at the littoral countries. On 21 August 2020, Turkey unveiled the biggest-ever natural gas find in the Black Sea. Based on the Turkish National Oil Company’s statement, the prospect has a potential of 11 trillion cubic feet of gas which represents the second largest hydrocarbon discovery in the world during the year 2020. While Turkey’s south coast Eastern Mediterranean is becoming increasingly an area of conflict, its northern coast has a potential to lead a way of regional cooperation. Turkey directed its second drillship to the Black Sea after the discovery. Ankara ambitiously aims to launch the first gas production by 2023, decrease its natural gas import dependency and hopes to negotiate leverage against Russia and other gas exporters.

Our webinar will address the following questions: – What does the latest Black Sea gas discovery mean economically? – What’s the hydrocarbon potential in the Black Sea and what does it mean for the littoral states and other Eastern European countries in terms of dependency on Russian gas, pipeline geopolitics, negotiations on gas contracts? – Can gas discoveries help spur regional cooperation in the region? – What are the possible impacts on the contested Mediterranean waters?