Ministry seek ways to protect industry from earthquakes
ISTANBUL
Following the devastating February earthquakes in 2023, authorities and the private sector have focused on a series of measures to ensure that the Turkish industry experiences minimal damage in the event of a possible Istanbul quake.
The private sector is looking into safer cities such as Ankara, Konya and Karaman, while the Industry and Technology Ministry’s 2030 Industry Strategy highlights the relocation of industries from high-risk earthquake areas to safer zones.
Scientists caution that a potential earthquake in Istanbul could have far-reaching impacts on the entire Marmara region, which serves as the hub of industrial activity and represents an "existential challenge for the country."
Relocating industrial zones from high-risk earthquake areas to safer regions will accelerate post-disaster economic recovery and minimize production losses, according to the ministry’s policy document.
As part of those efforts, under the coordination of the ministry, a risk analysis of industrial zones will be conducted and suitable site selections will be made, according to the document.
New industrial zones will be designed in accordance with disaster-resistant infrastructure standards. Reinforcement efforts to enhance the structural resilience of existing zones will be completed, it said.
The strategy envisages that “production and employment corridors” will be established to ensure the concentration of industry in safe regions.
The Organized Industrial Zones (OIZs) will have their railway and port connections, as well as their physical, technical and financial infrastructure, strengthened, according to the document.
To enhance the logistics infrastructure of OIZs, alternative financing mechanisms — primarily public-private partnerships — will be developed to encourage private sector investment, it said.
