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Home Green Marine EBRD Provides USD 17.5 Mn for Tekirdag Port Privatization, Expansion

EBRD Provides USD 17.5 Mn for Tekirdag Port Privatization, Expansion

December 11, 2019, by World Maritime News

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is supporting the privatization of a key Marmara Sea port with a new loan.

Image Courtesy: EBRD

The USD 17.5 million loan has been granted to Ceyport Tekirdag Uluslararasi Liman Isletmeciligi, an operator of Tekirdag Port and a subsidiary of the Turkish logistics group Cey Group.

Ceyport Tekirdag is operating the port under a 36-year concession granted by the Turkish Privatisation Authority last year.

As informed, the bank’s investment will be used to finance the acquisition of the operation rights of Tekirdag Port in Turkey under the long-term concession and modernization/expansion works at the port.

Commercial bank ICBC Turkey, part of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) is providing an equal loan.

Tekirdag Port handles general cargo, dry and liquid bulk, containers and roll-on/roll-off (RoRo) vessels and serves industrial and agricultural production and trade in the region. It is the only port in the western Marmara Sea that provides both RoRo and rail-ferry services to the eastern Marmara region.

“Enhanced port infrastructure will play a key role in directing a larger share of cargo from roads towards railway and shipping lines, which are more environmentally friendly alternatives,” the EBRD said.

Following the completion of the project whose total cost is estimated at USD 127.8 million, the port’s traffic is expected to increase from 1.6 million tons in 2017 to 1.9 million tons in 2022 for general and dry bulk cargo mainly due to improvement in the port’s infrastructure and from 150,000 to 260,000 tons for liquid cargo for the same period due to improvement in storage.