EBRD, IFC and FMO financing to help upgrade and expand electricity grid in Turkey’s western Anatolia

• US$ 330 million financing package to benefit 2.7 million people in five Turkish provinces
• Improvements in electricity grid will enhance efficiency and reliability of supply
• Project expected to help prevent  40,000 tonnes of CO₂ emissions per year

The EBRD, IFC – a member of the World Bank Group – and the Dutch Development Bank FMO are joining forces to finance improvements in the electricity distribution network in Turkey’s Osmangazi region in western Anatolia.

The lenders are providing the Turkish lira (TRY) equivalent of US$ 330 million to Osmangazi Elektrik Dagitim A.S. (OEDAS), the electricity distribution company of the Osmangazi region, which includes five provinces: Afyonkarahisar, Bilecik, Eskisehir, Kutahya and Usak.

The EBRD is providing US$ 110 million, IFC is extending a loan worth US$ 80 million and FMO is contributing US$ 65 million.

The funds will finance the upgrade, modernisation and expansion of the distribution network, which serves around 2.7 million people in 194 towns and 1,596 villages.

Improvements are expected to reduce electricity losses and enable the connection of increased solar capacity, as a result saving at least 40,000 tonnes of CO₂ emissions per year. The investment will also enhance environmental and safety standards and improve the efficiency and reliability of supply.

These investments are part of a capital expenditure programme required by Turkey’s Energy Market Regulatory Authority for the five-year regulatory period between 2016 and 2020.

OEDAS is ultimately owned by Zorlu Enerji which together with its subsidiaries engages in establishing, renting and operating electrical energy production plants in Turkey. It is part of the Turkish conglomerate Zorlu Holding.

The EBRD is a major investor in Turkey. Since 2009 it has invested €10 billion in various sectors of the Turkish economy, with almost all investment in the private sector. Earlier this year it invested in the debut bond issuance by Zorlu Osmangazi, the OEDAS parent company. In 2017 alone, the EBRD invested €1.6 billion in 51 projects in the country. Nearly a third of this financing was provided in Turkish lira.

The World Bank Group has been a long-time partner in the development of the power sector in Turkey. Since 2008, IFC has consistently supported the sector with a series of high-impact projects. It has financed over 5 GW of capacity generation by investing or mobilising more than US$ 3 billion in the Turkish power sector. Turkey is IFC’s second-largest country exposure globally and IFC’s office in Istanbul, established 30 years ago, is one of its largest outside Washington, D.C., providing services across regions.

FMO has long-term relations with several key players in the Turkish industrial and financial sectors. During the last few years, FMO’s Energy Department has increased its focus on renewable energy projects. The investments executed by Zorlu Osmangazi and OEDAS also contribute, among other outcomes, to state-of-the-art, more efficient (in other words, reducing losses and CO₂ emissions) electrical grid and distribution systems. In addition, the investments enable more smart metering, and a dedicated, professional approach to facilitating wind-, solar- and hydro- powered projects in Turkey and to managing the intermittency of these power sources.

Source: EBRD