ANKARA, June 13. /TASS/. Turkey started laying the gas pipeline at the bottom of the Black Sea off the country’s coast on Monday. The ceremony was attended by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

"In the first quarter of 2023, 10 mln cubic meters of gas will enter our national gas transmission system. We hope that the Sakarya gas field will reach peak production [of gas] in 2026," he said in an interview with TRT TV channel.

On August 21, 2020, Erdogan announced that Turkey had discovered large reserves of natural gas in the Black Sea. By 2023, the authorities expect to start deliveries to the domestic market.