The Turkish Minister of Energy and Natural Resources of Turkey Fatih Dönmez said on Monday that Turkey will continue exploration activities in its maritime jurisdiction areas in the Black Sea and the Eastern Mediterranean.

Evaluating the discovery of natural gas reserves in the Black Sea and hydrocarbon activities in the Eastern Mediterranean, Dönmez said that Turkey plans to dig 40 production wells in the Sakarya Gas field with the target of transporting gas to the system by 2023.

Issuing a message, Turkey’s Energy and Natural Resources Minister Fatih Dönmez noted that due to the intensity of activities in the Black Sea they had neglected the Eastern Mediterranean but added that this did not mean that work in the region would not continue. “We will continue activities in our maritime zone,” he said.