Railway project over Bosphorus ‘attracts lenders’

ISTANBUL

The railway project on the Third Bosphorus Bridge in Istanbul, also called the Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge, as a part of the Development Road project that aims to connect Asia to Europe, is gaining traction among international lenders.

Speaking at the International Road Federation (IRF) World Congress 2024 in Istanbul on Oct. 15, Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdülkadir Uraloğlu stated the World Bank has shown keen interest in the railway project, among others.

The quadrennial event is organized at Istanbul Congress Center on Oct. 15-18 by the Geneva-based federation, with the theme of “Connecting to empower mobility: Roads as enablers of a sustainable future for all.”

Uraloğlu noted that geographically and culturally, Türkiye is at the crossroads of continents, “a natural bridge between the Eastern and Western trade corridors, as well as in the Middle corridor, extending from Caucasian countries and Central Asia to Africa.”

The minister mentioned the significant projects, such as the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway, the Eurasia Tunnel, the Marmaray rail line in Istanbul connecting two continents, the Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge and the Northern Marmara Motorway in northwestern Türkiye, adding that work is still underway for new projects to develop the Middle corridor.

As for the Development Road project, Uraloğlu stated the uninterrupted rail and road to Europe “from the Grand Faw Port in Iraq to London” will be possible via the project, which is planned to be completed in 2030.

He noted that as a part of the project, 1,200 kilometers of highway and railway from the Grand Faw Port to Türkiye will be constructed.

“We are developing our railway network infrastructure by constructing a 2,094-kilometer railway route for the Development Road project, extending from the northwestern province of Edirne, and 1,923-kilometer highway route for the project,” he said.

“We will take concrete steps to start the construction projects in the first months of 2025,” he added.

The minister emphasized that Türkiye’s current high-standard road network spans across 68,494 kilometers.

Meanwhile, Mauricio Zuazua, regional chair for the Middle East and Africa at investment firm Kearney, said that Türkiye’s “strategic location and growing economy” are attracting foreign direct investments (FDI) from Russia, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states and China.

Speaking to state-run Anadolu Agency, Zuazua emphasized that companies should take note of Türkiye’s growth and “give it serious consideration as an investment opportunity.”

“Istanbul gained three places to rank at [number] 25 of 156 cities on our 2023 Global Cities Index, which quantifies the extent to which a city can attract, retain, and generate global flows of capital, people and ideas,” he said.

Zuazua stated that Türkiye’s various sectors have demonstrated significant growth potential in recent years.

“Banking and financial services, energy and utilities, transportation and logistics are also strong and have brought a host of global names to invest in Türkiye,” he noted.