IEA’s Birol weighs in on coup plot

Turkey

ANKARA, July 22, 2016 – The attempted coup by a small group within the Turkish Armed Forces last Friday will not greatly impact energy investment in Turkey, according to International Energy Agency (IEA) executive director and Turkish national Fatih Birol.

In an interview with Turkey’s Anadolu Agency published on Friday, Birol pointed to the nature of oil and gas projects as one of the reasons investment is not expected to slump. “Two points need to be considered in energy investments. First, energy projects are long-term projects, and second the fundamentals regarding the energy sector in the country have to be taken into account,” Birol said.

Referring to Turkey, Birol said investments in the country’s energy industry were “unlikely to be lost,” adding, “The steps taken up to now are in place to increase this appetite.”

On Wednesday, the country declared a three-month state of emergency.