ANKARA, September 15. /TASS/. Turkey expects "more reasonable prices" for Russian gas in the coming years, hoping to come to an understanding with Gazprom on this issue, Turkish Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar told a briefing.

"We had an agreement with Russia on a ceiling. Should the TTF Index fluctuate, the ceiling protects the Turkish price. If this is what you mean by a discount, then you can call it a discount. However, Turkish gas prices are high. We expect more reasonable prices from Gazprom this year as it has been a reliable supplier, while Turkey has been a good and reliable consumer of Russian gas. However, we should take the competitiveness of this issue into account, hopefully we will reach an understanding," he said.

Turkey "paid $38 bln for gas imports, with Russia accounting for 40%," the minister noted.

Reuters said earlier that Turkey had reached an agreement with Russia to postpone payments for natural gas worth $600 mln until 2024.

Russia is the key natural gas supplier to Turkey as it delivers more than 40% of all imported gas each year.