TURKEY: Increasing private sector participation in Turkey's e-mobility transition

This activity aimed to assist the Turkish municipalities of Izmir and Gaziantep to identify technical characteristics and suitable funding options for expanding urban battery electric bus (BEB) services. PPIAF conducted interviews, fieldwork, and data analysis, identified two BEB project opportunities, and arranged a partnership with a European BEB operator to enable pilot projects, sustainable urban transport programs, and diversification of investment sources. The support suggested that Izmir could invest in eMobility hubs shared between bus, tram, car-sharing, and micro-mobility services as a medium-term goal, while Gaziantep could focus on developing in-house capacity around BEB operations and a "proof of concept" to establish the bankability of a BEB project. Future efforts could expand support to additional Turkish municipalities, get involved in private EV charging infrastructure, and support the development of urban low-emission transport zones, despite needing to revisit plans due to recent earthquakes affecting Gaziantep.