The Domestic Transporters Association (YND) is preparing to establish one of Europe's largest logistics bases next to one of Turkey's key megaprojects, Kanal Istanbul, a canal parallel to the Bosporus to connect the Black Sea and the Marmara Sea.
YND Chairman Sedat Hakan Karataş said the initial cost of the project is expected to be around TL 1.2 billion (around $290 million), with a minimum investment of $300 million for the project, Turkish Dünya daily reported yesterday.The biggest problem of logistics is traffic and fast route, said Karataş. "The closer and faster the logistics are to all transportation networks, the stronger and the better the services. The absence of a modern, technologically large land-based logistics center where all transporters come together is one of the greatest problems for domestic transporters because Istanbul is a very big metropolis. Transporters are scattered all over Istanbul having established such centers in 10 different regions," he said.
Indicating that with this project they aim to establish a huge center to serve all domestic shipping companies, Karataş said: "The opening of the Istanbul's third bridge, the Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge, and Istanbul New Airport and the Kanal Istanbul, which are to be opened, showed us that we need a big logistics base located between Hadımköy and Arnavutköy. All of our research and reviews pointed to this location as the best one. When Kanal Istanbul is completed, there will be a very big population shift to that area. The presence of a logistics base at such a point would provide a distinct advantage to all segments."Indicating that the project, "Istanbul-Eurasia Logistics Base (İSTAV), is to be built on 150 acres of land, the YND chairman said it will be a huge logistics base with customs area, warehouse, rig centers, garages, stock exchange and social facilities - a serious investment.
"We foresee an initial investment of at least $300 million in the first place," Karataş said.
Karataş stated that they need financial support for this investment, indicating that they will start the project immediately if the government provides support for land acquisition and finance.