The Energy & Natural Resources Ministry signed a protocol on 10 November with a venture led by the US' General Electric Company (GE) for the construction of a $200 million, 206-MW gas-fired power plant at Eregli, on the Black Sea coast. The plant will be built on the private-sector build-operate-transfer (BOT) model, and was signed in the presence of visiting US Energy Secretary Federico Pena.

The plant will take about three years to build, and its annual output of 1,500 million kWh will power the nearby Eregli Iron & Steelworks and several other industries close by. GE will supply the equipment, while its local joint venture ATAM Elektrik will carry out construction.

However, the project still needs to be approved by the country's supreme administrative court, the Council of State or Danistay, before a final contract can be signed. The Danistay may take some time to review the project, given its previous track record in BOT projects.