Shiyana Gunasekara, Deputy Director of the African and Middle Eastern Affairs Office of the US Department of Energy, evaluated the LPG trade between Turkey and the USA, global energy supply security and investments in clean cooking solutions to Habertürk Energy Editor İrem Kuşoğlu Görgü.
Participating in the Liquid Gas Week 2026 event held in Istanbul, Gunasekara pointed out Türkiye's position in the global LPG market and said that the country is an important market with its developed autogas vehicle fleet and its role in regional trade.
Gunasekara stated that Türkiye imports a large amount of LPG both for domestic use and for regional trade, and said, "I can say that Türkiye is currently one of the largest LPG markets in the world. Turkey is known for its highly developed autogas vehicle fleet and imports large amounts of LPG. It uses this LPG both domestically and trades it regionally. This makes Türkiye a superpower in the regional LPG market."
Stating that he thinks Türkiye understands the importance of reliable energy supply better than many countries, Gunasekara stated that there are three main opportunities that can further strengthen the country's LPG trade.
Noting that the first of these is to increase trade, Gunasekara said:
"US-based LPG supply currently leads the global market. Not only is it reliable, but I think it will increase further over the next few years. The supply volumes we are seeing are not only stable, but because we have a highly diversified export market, our suppliers are in a position to further strengthen the markets of importing countries. I think developing trade relations with Turkey will further strengthen the country's position as a regional energy hub."
"Türkiye's regional center location makes infrastructure critical for the entire region"
Stating that the second opportunity is infrastructure, Gunasekara explained that he also touched upon the importance of terminal, storage and distribution infrastructure within the scope of Liquid Gas Week.
Gunasekara said, "Terminals, storage and distribution infrastructure. These are the elements that transform the supply from mere molecules to energy security. Türkiye's position as a regional center makes the infrastructure critical for the entire region. At the end of the day, we are all aware that regional security is one of the basic foundations of global energy security." he said.
Noting that the third opportunity is technical expertise, Gunasekara said in his evaluation of Turkish engineering: "I had the privilege of seeing world-renowned Turkish engineering up close and personal at Aygaz's LPG facility. Turkish companies really know how to establish complex and safe infrastructures that support developed LPG markets. Such technical know-how can provide significant benefits both regionally and to developing markets much beyond Türkiye's borders." he said.
Emphasis on LPG in clean cooking solutions from the USA
Referring to the USA's efforts to increase access to clean cooking solutions, especially in Africa, Gunasekara stated that affordable and reliable energy transforms people's lives.
Recalling US Energy Secretary Chris Wright's approach to this issue, Gunasekara stated that LPG is one of the fastest ways to provide access to affordable and reliable energy.
Pointing out the importance of reducing energy poverty and ensuring energy security at the household level, Gunasekara said:
"When we talk about energy abundance, we cannot have this discussion without talking about reducing energy poverty and at the same time ensuring energy security at the household level. We talk about big infrastructure projects, but we also need to talk about the people who benefit from increased access to energy."
Stating that LPG plays an important role in access to clean cooking solutions, Gunasekara said, "Since 2018, approximately three quarters of the progress made in access to clean cooking solutions, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa, has been achieved thanks to LPG." he said.
Stating that families who cook using wood and charcoal spend hours every day collecting these fuels, Gunasekara said that toxic air pollution in indoor areas negatively affects people's lives.
Gunasekara said, "LPG gives these people back their time. It gives back not only hours from their days, but also days from their lives." he said.
Evaluating the US Department of Energy's efforts in the field of clean cooking under three headings, Gunasekara stated that the first of these is to increase the priority of LPG in clean cooking solutions.
Stating that they brought together G20 energy ministers in Houston, Gunasekara said that an agreement was reached at the meeting that technology neutrality should be adopted in the financing of clean cooking projects and that the projects should be evaluated according to their own qualities.
Gunasekara made the following assessment on the subject:
"Ministers have said that LPG projects in particular should be judged on how well they serve households and institutions, not on an arbitrary or ideologically based classification of imperatives or solutions. I think for too long we have been faced with policies that prevent the financing of solutions that involve hydrocarbons in any form. But we know that such policies actually harm the people they are intended to help."
Stating that the second area of work is the development of cooperation at the bilateral level with ministries of energy, Gunasekara explained that they brought together their partners with industry stakeholders from the USA and those working closely with the USA, and national laboratories with technical expertise in expanding the LPG markets.
"The real bottleneck is financing to reduce investment risks"
Gunasekara stated that the third area of work is financing to reduce investment risks and said that he sees this issue as the main bottleneck in increasing access to clean cooking solutions.
Stating that there are strong private capital flows in the African continent, but there are not enough investable projects with risk-reduced financing support, Gunasekara continued as follows:
"Private capital flows, especially on the African continent, are actually quite strong. However, there are not enough investable projects with financing support to reduce investment risks. Therefore, together with our partners within the US government, we are evaluating how the terminals, storage capacity and distribution infrastructure needed by the LPG markets can be financed and supported."
Gunasekara stated that, as the US Department of Energy, they continue their work in these three areas and aim to work with different partners to close the gap in access to clean cooking solutions.
"The biggest risk is dependence on a single supplier or route"
Making evaluations about the effects of geopolitical tensions on global energy markets, Gunasekara said that the biggest risk in LPG supply security is concentration on certain supply sources.
Stating that this risk has become more evident, especially in the last few years, Gunasekara said, "I can say that the biggest risk we have seen, especially in the last few years, is excessive dependence on certain sources in supply. In other words, being dependent on a single supplier, a single route or a single region in energy supply." he said.
Gunasekara stated that the developments experienced this year revealed the risks of concentration in supply and said, "This year clearly showed what can happen when dependency and supply disruptions come together. The most severely affected markets were those that were generally dependent on a single main supply source and at the same time had very limited storage capacity." he said.
Emphasizing that countries should diversify their supply sources to reduce their vulnerability to supply disruptions, Gunasekara said:
"The first is to diversify supply sources. Because each new supply source ensures that the next supply shock is smaller and its impact is more limited. The USA is ready to be such a supply partner for these countries."
Stating that the second priority is the development of storage and distribution infrastructure, Gunasekara stated that countries with sufficient storage capacity can mitigate the effects of supply shocks, while in markets where the infrastructure is not sufficiently developed, these risks are directly reflected on households.
Gunasekara emphasized that investments should be continued and said that not only private capital but also different financing sources should be used to support innovative business models.
Stating that the solutions in this field already exist, Gunasekara said, "The solutions that can address this problem are already in our hands today. Therefore, we do not need to waste another 10 or 20 years waiting for a better solution to emerge. The solutions are in front of us right now. What we need to do is to direct the existing financing tools to today's solutions." made his assessment.
