Çandarlı Port project shifts focus to offshore wind energy

The Çandarlı Port project in the North Aegean, originally conceived in 1976 to rival Greece’s Piraeus Port, has remained unfinished for 50 years despite significant investment. After decades of delays involving environmental reports and zoning plans, the project faced construction setbacks due to insufficient soil studies and structural shifts in breakwaters and quay piles. Following a failed tender in 2013, the planned capacity was reduced from 12 million TEU to 4 million TEU.

Recent developments suggest a shift in the site's purpose. The Izmir Development Agency (İZKA) has included the Çandarlı Port area in its 2026 work program, focusing on the energy industry. Additionally, a project has won a competition held by the Ministry of Industry and Technology to establish a production facility for floating offshore wind turbine platforms in the region. This new investment is estimated to have a fixed cost of approximately 21 billion lira.