Italian engineering group Saipem has won a $425 million contract ‍to continue ‍the development of Turkey's largest offshore natural ​gas field, it said on Wednesday.

The contract, awarded by ⁠Turkish Petroleum OTC, covers the third phase of a project ⁠to develop ‌the Sakarya field, focusing on the construction of three additional pipelines totalling around 153 km, ⁠along with related subsea structures.

These will connect the recently discovered Goktepe gas reserve to Sakarya's phase 3 facilities, Saipem said in a statement.

Located ⁠at a depth ​of 2,200 meters and about 80 km from the Sakarya phase 3 ‍site, the Goktepe field will boost production capacity once linked ​to existing infrastructure.

Saipem had already been involved in Sakarya's first and second phases of development. The new contract, which runs for about two and a half years, will be managed in continuity with the agreement signed in September 2025 for Sakarya's third-phase development.

Offshore installation work will be carried out by Saipem's pipe-laying ⁠vessel Castorone in the second ‌half of 2027, the company added.

Turkey has been investing heavily in the Sakarya field, its largest ‌gas ⁠discovery, to reduce reliance on imports and strengthen energy security.

(Reporting ⁠by Giselda Vagnoni Editing by Keith Weir)