Mary

Mary Province contains the Galkynysh gas field (formerly South Yolotan)—one of the world's largest natural gas deposits, discovered in 2006 and now producing the bulk of Turkmenistan's 77.6 billion cubic meters annual output. This single geological formation made Turkmenistan a major gas exporter and explains why China invested billions in the Central Asia-China gas pipeline that carries Mary's product 1,800km to Xinjiang. The province's economy before gas was agricultural: the ancient oasis of Merv (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) once sat on the Silk Road as a center of Islamic learning before Mongol destruction in 1221. Soviet-era cotton cultivation continues alongside gas extraction, creating a resource-rich province that nonetheless sees limited local benefit as revenues flow to Ashgabat. The completed autobahn (2024) now connects Mary to the capital in under three hours, facilitating both resource extraction and centralized control. With oil and gas constituting 60% of GDP and China purchasing most exports, Mary's Galkynysh field essentially underwrites the Turkmen state. By 2026, the province's trajectory depends on Chinese demand, global gas prices, and whether any diversification emerges beyond the extraction economy that will eventually deplete.