BOTAŞ Petroleum Pipeline Corporation (BOTAS) is the state-owned crude oil

Oil

An oil is any substance that is liquid at ambient temperatures and does not mix with water but may mix with other oils and organic solvents. This general definition includes vegetable oils, volatile essential oils, petrochemical oils, and synthetic oils....

 and natural gas

Natural gas

Natural gas is a naturally occurring gas mixture consisting primarily of methane, typically with 0–20% higher hydrocarbons . It is found associated with other hydrocarbon fuel, in coal beds, as methane clathrates, and is an important fuel source and a major feedstock for fertilizers.Most natural...

 pipelines and trading company in Turkey

Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

. The company was established in 1974 as a subsidiary of Türkiye Petrolleri Anonim Ortaklığı

Türkiye Petrolleri Anonim Ortakligi

Türkiye Petrolleri Anonim Ortaklığı is the national oil and gas company of Turkey and one of the most important industrial companies in the country. The company had reserves of of oil equivalent in 2005, and the reserves are projected to increase to of oil equivalent in 2010...

 (TPAO). Since 1995, BOTAS is a wholly state-owned company.

History

BOTAŞ was originally established in 1974 for construction and operation of the Kirkuk-Ceyhan Oil Pipeline

Kirkuk-Ceyhan Oil Pipeline

Kirkuk–Ceyhan Oil Pipeline is a long pipeline. It is Iraq's largest crude oil export line.-Technical description:...

. Since 1987, BOTAŞ has been also involved in the natural gas transportation and trade activities. From February 9, 1990 until May 2, 2001, BOTAŞ had monopoly rights on natural gas import, distribution, sales and pricing. In practice, the gas distribution monopoly of BOTAŞ ended only in 2007, when Royal Dutch Shell

Royal Dutch Shell

Royal Dutch Shell plc , commonly known as Shell, is a global oil and gas company headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands and with its registered office in London, United Kingdom. It is the fifth-largest company in the world according to a composite measure by Forbes magazine and one of the six...

 and Bosphorus Gaz, a joint venture of Gazprom

Gazprom

Open Joint Stock Company Gazprom is the largest extractor of natural gas in the world and the largest Russian company. Its headquarters are in Cheryomushki District, South-Western Administrative Okrug, Moscow...

 and Tur Enerji, started to sell natural gas in the market.

Pipeline operations

In addition to the Kirkuk-Ceyhan Oil Pipeline, BOTAŞ owns and operates Ceyhan-Kırıkkale, Batman-Dörtyol, and Şelmo-Batman crude oil pipelines. It also owns and operates the national gas grid of Turkey with total length of 4500 kilometres (2,796.2 mi), and Marmara Ereğlisi Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Import Terminal. Internationally BOTAŞ participates in the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline

Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline

The Baku–Tbilisi–Ceyhan pipeline is a long crude oil pipeline from the Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli oil field in the Caspian Sea to the Mediterranean Sea. It connects Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan; Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia; and Ceyhan, a port on the south-eastern Mediterranean coast of Turkey,...

, Arab Gas Pipeline

Arab Gas Pipeline

The Arab Gas Pipeline is a natural gas pipeline in the Middle East. It exports Egyptian natural gas to Jordan, Syria and Lebanon, with a separate line to Israel. It has a total length of at a cost of US$1.2 billion.-Arish–Aqaba section:...

 section between Syria and Turkey, and Turkey-Greece pipeline

Turkey-Greece pipeline

The Turkey–Greece pipeline is a long natural gas pipeline, which connects Turkish and Greek gas grids. The pipeline begins in Karacabey in Turkey and runs to Komotini in Greece.-History:...

. It is also partner in the Nabucco Pipeline

Nabucco Pipeline

The Nabucco pipeline is a proposed natural gas pipeline from Erzurum in Turkey to Baumgarten an der March in Austria diversifying natural gas suppliers and delivery routes for Europe. The pipeline attempts to lessen European dependence on Russian energy...

project.