Turkmenistan Targets 76 Bcm Gas Output in 2026 as Exports to China Continue

Turkmenistan plans to produce 76 billion cubic meters of natural gas in 2026, with the majority exported to China via pipeline. The country is also pursuing additional export routes and capacity expansions to diversify supply.

(Reuters) - Turkmenistan, a Central Asian country with the world's fourth largest natural gas reserves, plans to produce approximately 76 Bcm of gas in 2026, steady with last year, Maksat Babayev, head of the state-owned gas company Turkmengaz, said on Friday.

China will be the main buyer, with Uzbekistan also purchasing some, Babayev told Reuters. He was speaking at the launch of the fourth stage of the Galkynysh gas field in the deserts of eastern Turkmenistan.

China has for almost two decades been the primary buyer of Turkmen natural gas, much of which is from Galkynysh. The country's gas sector is opaque and statistics are published irregularly.

Turkmen officials say they are looking to diversify gas exports, including via a pipeline Turkmenistan is building to the Afghan city of Herat, which Ashgabat hopes might one day stretch to Pakistan and India.

For now, the bulk of Turkmenistan's gas exports go to China, via a gas pipeline system supplying more than 30 Bcm of gas annually.

In the event a fourth line that has been under discussion is built, Turkmengaz has said it expects this volume would increase to approximately 65 Bcm.

On Thursday, China's national petroleum company CNPC and Turkmengaz signed an agreement on the fourth stage of development of the Galkynysh gas field and the construction of a gas processing plant with a capacity of 10 Bcm.