Turkey is seeking to join a major energy project that would link the Caspian Sea to the Black Sea and on to Europe, deepening its role as an energy hub between Asian and European markets.
Turkish Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said Ankara had expressed its intention to take part in and support the Black Sea Energy project, following an invitation from Azerbaijan.
Speaking to the Azerbaijani news agency Trend, Bayraktar described it as a large interconnection project that would begin in Azerbaijan and Georgia, run undersea beneath the Black Sea, and end in Romania and Hungary. He said that after Azerbaijan's invitation, Turkey had also expressed its intention to participate in and support the project.
Three Major Energy Projects
Bayraktar said energy cooperation between Turkey and Azerbaijan was entering a new phase, focused on electricity and renewable sources, with three key projects currently on the table.
The first concerns linking the electricity grid of Nakhchivan, an exclave of Azerbaijan, with Turkey and allowing power exchange between the two sides. At a later stage, the line could also be connected to mainland Azerbaijan through the Zangezur corridor.
The second is a four-way energy corridor that would connect Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey and Bulgaria, with the aim of getting electricity generated in Azerbaijan to European markets by way of Georgia, Turkey and Bulgaria.
The third and most ambitious is the undersea electricity cable beneath the Black Sea.
The Black Sea Submarine Cable
The agreement for the Black Sea Energy submarine cable was signed in December 2022 by Azerbaijan, Romania, Georgia and Hungary. Bulgaria later announced it wanted to join the project and moved to have a state energy company join the consortium.
The companies involved include Transelectrica of Romania, Azerenerji of Azerbaijan, Georgian State Electrosystem, and MVM of Hungary. A joint company, GECO Power Company, has been set up to carry out the project.
Construction of the cable is estimated to take about three to four years. The total cost of the project is put at 3.5 billion euros, with the European Commission planning to provide around 2.3 billion euros of that sum.
The Azerbaijan-Georgia-Turkey-Bulgaria Corridor
In April 2025, the energy ministers of Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey and Bulgaria signed a memorandum of cooperation on green energy. That agreement laid the groundwork for a new energy corridor able to carry green electricity from the Caspian region to Southeast Europe, and from there on to Romania and Hungary.
The Nakhchivan Plan
Separate weight is being placed on the energy corridor between Azerbaijan and Turkey. The plan calls for creating a "green energy zone" in Nakhchivan in a first phase, followed by connecting it to Turkey in a second phase.
Under consideration is the construction of a high-voltage direct current, or HVDC, line capable of carrying around 1 gigawatt of green energy.
Through these projects, Ankara is trying to position itself at the centre of a new energy axis linking the South Caucasus with Europe, not only through natural gas but also through electricity from renewable sources.
