SOCAR sets sights on Türkiye’s energy market with power plant acquisition talks

Azerbaijan’s state-owned oil company, SOCAR, is in negotiations to purchase a natural gas-fired power plant in Türkiye.

SOCAR has placed a bid between $225 million and $250 million for the 870 MW Central Anatolian Gas Thermal Power Plant, currently owned by the Turkish energy company Gama Enerji A.Ş, Caliber.Az reports via local media. 

The two companies have agreed to continue discussions based on SOCAR’s proposal. If finalised, the acquisition would open up new opportunities for SOCAR to strengthen its presence in Türkiye’s rapidly growing electricity market and provide an additional revenue stream. Although no legally binding offer has been made yet, sources suggest that the deal will move forward pending approval from the boards of both SOCAR and Gama Enerji. 

Earlier, Siemens Türkiye and SOCAR Türkiye successfully completed a major joint project to modernise the energy infrastructure at the Petkim petrochemical complex in Aliaga. This collaboration, which began in 2017, focused on updating energy systems across 18 plants within the complex. In 2021, the companies signed a five-year agreement to continue enhancing the facility's energy efficiency and sustainability.

As part of the modernisation effort, the project involved the replacement of approximately 150 medium-voltage panels, the upgrade of low-voltage panels, and the implementation of SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) systems. The improvements have significantly boosted the reliability of the energy supply, improved operational efficiency, and enhanced safety standards across the plants.

By Naila Huseynova