European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has loaned US$ 12 million to increase the capacity and to improve the efficiency of Turkey’s key trans-shipment hub Asyaport. The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, is providing a loan in an equal amount for this investment.

The funds will co-finance the acquisition and installation of energy-efficient electric ship-to-shore cranes, electric rubber-tired gantry cranes and terminal tractors.

The new equipment will help increase the port’s berth and yard capacity during peak hours and decrease vessel turnaround times, leading to more efficient handling of regional trans-shipment and domestic container traffic from industrial zones in Turkey’s Tekirdağ region.

Asyaport is the largest trans-shipment terminal near the Bosphorus Strait. Built between 2013 and 2015 with co-financing from the EBRD, it primarily serves container cargo to and from countries around the Black Sea and increasingly handles import and export cargo to and from local industrial hubs. It is a joint venture between Global Terminals Limited (GTL), an affiliate of the Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), and the Turkish Soyuer family.