Türkiye Secures USD1.98B from World Bank for Major Railway Project

(MENAFN) Türkiye has secured €1.67 billion ($1.98 billion) from the World Bank to finance a landmark railway corridor spanning Istanbul's Asian and European shores, the country's Treasury and Finance Ministry confirmed.

The injection will fund construction of a 127-kilometer (78-mile) rail line delivering a new crossing over the Bosphorus Strait — a major infrastructure gap long seen as a drag on regional connectivity and trade efficiency.

World Bank country director for Türkiye, Humberto Lopez, called the undertaking a generational shift for the country's transport network. "This project is a strategic and transformational investment for Türkiye," Lopez said Tuesday. "By removing a critical rail bottleneck at the Istanbul Strait and enhancing the resilience and efficiency of rail infrastructure, Türkiye is boosting its competitiveness and reinforcing its role as a logistic hub."

The corridor, engineered to bypass Istanbul's congested urban core and facilitate seamless Europe-Asia freight and passenger movement, is projected to handle 33 million passengers and 30 million tonnes of cargo each year. Key nodes along the route include Gebze, Sabiha Gokcen Airport, the Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge, Istanbul Airport, and Halkali — with approximately half the track running underground through tunnels.

Beyond transportation, the World Bank projected the project would generate up to 414,000 higher-paying positions, including as many as 99,000 newly created jobs, while delivering broad economic spillovers across manufacturing, agriculture, and services.

Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek noted that concessional financing secured so far this year has already reached approximately €3 billion ($3.47 billion), with total external funding under favorable terms expected to climb to $6.75 billion through contributions from additional international partners.

"Our public investment support for the transportation sector will strongly continue, in line with our Medium-Term Program, which prioritizes sustainable growth and social welfare," Simsek said.

The minister also pointed to deepening institutional ties with the World Bank, with $18 billion in additional financing projected to be layered onto an existing $17 billion portfolio under the 2024–2028 Country Partnership Framework.

The World Bank, for its part, reaffirmed its commitment to Türkiye's development trajectory, stating it "remains committed to supporting Türkiye in building sustainable, resilient infrastructure that promotes inclusive growth and strengthens regional integration."

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