Cooperation with Canada in Energy and Mining

On the second day of his visit to Canada, Minister Bayraktar attended the PDAC 2026 Congress, organized by the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC), which is recognized as the world's largest and most prestigious international organization in the mineral exploration and mining sector.

Türkiye Exclusive Session

Minister Bayraktar delivered a speech at the Türkiye special session titled "The Strategic Role and Future of Mining in the Economy" held as part of the congress. Bayraktar shared Türkiye’s vision for energy and mining with his audience.

20 Billion Dollars for Energy Efficiency

Bayraktar emphasized that they are working to meet the growing demand for energy while also reducing dependence on imported resources. Pointing out that the Turkish economy aims to be carbon neutral by 2053, Minister Bayraktar said, "We attach the utmost importance to our domestic and renewable energy resources. Türkiye wants to use all its renewable resources." Emphasizing the need to use energy efficiently in all areas of the economy, Bayraktar said, "We will invest approximately $20 billion in energy efficiency over the next seven years, which will reduce our primary energy consumption by 15 percent."

Nuclear Cooperation Target
Noting that they want to add nuclear energy to the energy mix, Bayraktar said, "We aim to have at least 20 gigawatts of nuclear energy production capacity by 2050. We need to include both large-scale, conventional nuclear power plants and Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) in this nuclear program." Bayraktar pointed out that nuclear energy is one of the areas where they aim to collaborate with Canada.

Energy Transition Cannot Happen Without Mining

Emphasizing the importance of mining, Bayraktar said: "Without mining and minerals, not only Türkiye, but also the world cannot realize the energy transition and energy transformation. This requires a significant amount of minerals. However, one of the challenges we all face is that the developments on the mineral and mining side cannot meet the need for energy transformation on the other side. That's why we need to improve ourselves further on the mining side. This is exactly why we are here today: to cooperate more, to look for opportunities, to invite Canadian companies and to encourage Turkish companies to cooperate with Canadian companies and their technologies, to partner in the field of mining by bringing expertise and experience to Türkiye.”

We Are Looking For Opportunities

Noting that they not only invite Canadian companies to invest in Türkiye, but also encourage Turkish companies to invest in Canada, Bayraktar said, "Especially our public oil and natural gas company Türkiye Petrolleri and our mining company Eti Maden can come and invest in Canada. We are looking for these opportunities and alternatives. Cooperation on the mining side is also an important issue that we are looking for," he said.

Important Role in LNG for European Markets

Minister Bayraktar also said that they invested in infrastructure and regasification capacity for liquefied natural gas (LNG) and increased their capacity, and that Türkiye has the infrastructure to deliver Canadian LNG to Europe. Minister Bayraktar said, "We are currently negotiating with some LNG suppliers on how they can deliver their LNG to European markets. Because we have sufficient infrastructure and sufficient interconnection between Türkiye and Europe. When you bring your ships to Türkiye, we can regasify them through our infrastructure and give them to pipelines and deliver the gas to the European markets." he also said.

Round Table Meeting

Minister Bayraktar, who also attended the Canada-Türkiye Energy and Mining Roundtable Meeting in Toronto, met with senior executives of international mining and energy companies. Bayraktar conveyed Türkiye's vision in the field of energy and mining at the meeting.

Mining Investments

Bayraktar noted that they are trying to create an equal and fair competition environment for companies that will invest in the mining field. Reminding that a new law was passed in the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye last year that made significant changes in the permit processes and related procedures, Bayraktar said, "I believe that this will accelerate and facilitate the arrival of foreign investments to Türkiye."

Cooperation in Third Countries

Emphasizing that the relations between Türkiye and Canada are good, Bayraktar said, "We can increase our bilateral trade. Of course, we can also focus on the nuclear side," he said. Pointing out that public companies in the fields of oil and mining also operate outside of Türkiye, Bayraktar said, "I would like to say that Canada and Türkiye can also cooperate in third countries."

Minister Bayraktar also held some bilateral meetings within the scope of Toronto contacts. Minister Bayraktar met with Oakville West Deputy Şima Açan, the first Turkish member in the Canadian Parliament. Minister Bayraktar also met with Brian Jean, Minister of Energy and Mining of the province of Alberta, and Stephen Lecce, Minister of Energy and Mining of the province of Ontario.