The groundbreaking ceremony of Türkiye’s largest trade gateway to the world-Mersin International Port’s new Mersin Port Expansion Project (EMH2) was held today in the presence of Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Adil Karaismailoğlu and Investment Office Head of PPP Department Ali Kamil Özmen. With the USD 375 million-worth investment, total capacity of the Port will reach 3.6 million TEU from 2.6 million TEU.
Speaking at the ceremony, Minister İsmailoğlu said, “While we increase the weight of seaways in freight and passenger transportation, we mobilize all our means to increase our strength in every inch of our Blue Homeland. Once Mersin International Port’s expansion project is completed, 2 mega ships of 400 meters each will be able to dock at the same time.”
Mersin International Port General Manager Johan Van Daele also expressed his excitement in unveiling the project, which will contribute to the development of the region and Türkiye, and will provide additional employment for 500 people directly and 5000 indirectly.
Making an assessment for the Mersin Port Expansion Project, Investment Office Head of Public Private Partnership Department Ali Kamil Özmen said; “Türkiye is in an ideal location for international companies with its production capacity, young, dynamic and qualified workforce, logistics infrastructure and other comparative advantages. Port investments-the cornerstone of the logistics sector-improve our logistics infrastructure and contribute to easy access of investors operating in our country to the world. Mersin International Port is very important for the sector and adds value to the entire Eastern Mediterranean region along with Türkiye. We have closely followed up and provided support for the investment, thanks to the significant support we received from President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. As the Investment Office, we will continue and prioritize projects in the logistics sector that will increase our exports and help achieve our 2023 targets.
Mersin Uluslararası Liman İşletmeciliği A.Ş., a partnership of Akfen Holding and PSA International, has taken over Mersin Port’s management from Turkish State Railways in 2007 for 36 years. The Australian IFM Fund has acquired shares from the port in 2017. With its wide handling capacity, Mersin International Port is Türkiye’s largest port and is one of the major container ports in the Mediterranean Region.