MIGA Increases Support for Hospital in Türkiye Province Devastated by Earthquake
WASHINGTON, May 18, 2023 – The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) of the World Bank Group has increased guarantees for the Gaziantep Hospital complex in Türkiye to support investments by Meridiam Eurasia SAS, of France, a new investor in the project. The guarantees cover up to €121.5 million ($133.7 million) and protect Meridiam against the risks of breach of contract, and war and civil disturbance for up to 15 years. With this additional guarantee, MIGA’s coverage for this project increases from €54 million to €175.4 million.
Construction of the hospital complex began in 2017 at a location south of the provincial city of Gaziantep in southeastern Türkiye. When completed, the 1,875-bed complex will consist of a general hospital, a women and children’s hospital, and a cardiovascular and oncology hospital. In addition, a diagnostic and treatment center, health support facilities, and a heliport will be built.
“The devastation resulting from the recent earthquake in the Gaziantep region compounded with the large influx of Syrian refugees underscores the urgent need to complete this hospital complex,” said Hiroshi Matano, Executive Vice President of MIGA. “We are eager to continue supporting Türkiye’s globally recognized health public-private partnership program to increase access to much-needed health services.”
The project had experienced challenges related to increases in construction costs, financial issues of the project’s main contractor, and difficulties in undertaking construction works during the COVID-19 pandemic. After starting in 2017, construction works suffered delays and stopped in spring 2020, about 50 percent complete.
Meridiam’s investment was effected through an acquisition of a 25.5% equity stake in the project enterprise, co-shareholding with engineering, procurement, and construction contractor Rönesans. Construction has re-started and is ongoing at full speed. Meridiam and Rönesans have committed to delivering a fully functioning, state-of-the-art integrated facility by July 2024.
Up to 19,000 patients a day are expected to seek health services when the complex is operational, a 50 percent increase from the current number of daily patients reached in the province. Health services will also be available to the estimated 650,000 Syrian refugees living in the Gaziantep province.
In addition to the Gaziantep Hospital complex, MIGA is supporting five other PPP City Hospitals in Turkey.
The Gaziantep Hospital complex will be a low-carbon and climate-resilient health care facility that incorporates energy efficiency measures, a trigeneration energy system, and flood drainage works. It will also have a LEED certification. With these measures, the construction of the hospital complex is expected to align with low-carbon and climate-resilient development pathways for Türkiye.
In addition, the hospital complex is being built to modern seismic standards. Reports from the project site indicated that it was not damaged in the February earthquake, the region’s most destructive since 1939.
“We have been investing for 10 years in sustainable and resilient infrastructure supporting the delivery of public health services in Türkiye,” said Matthieu Muzumdar, Deputy CEO of Meridiam. “Our existing hospitals have been delivering significant impact for local communities and we are now leveraging this experience to provide an additional fifth critical infrastructure in Gaziantep that will be one of the most significant and modern health care facilities in Türkiye.”
ABOUT MERIDIAM
Meridiam was founded in 2005 by Thierry Déau, with the belief that the alignment of interests between the public and private sector can provide critical solutions to the collective needs of communities. Meridiam is an independent investment Benefit Corporation and an asset manager. The firm specializes in the development, financing, and long-term management of sustainable public infrastructure in three core sectors: sustainable mobility, critical public services and innovative low carbon solutions. With offices in Addis Ababa, Amman, Dakar, Istanbul, Johannesburg, Libreville, Luxembourg, New York, Paris, Vienna and Washington, Meridiam manages US$20 billion and more than 120 projects to date. Meridiam is certified ISO 9001: 2015, Advanced Sustainability Rating by VigeoEiris (Moody’s), ISO 37001 Anti-Corruption certification by AFNOR and applies a proprietary methodology in relation to ESG and impact based on United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
ABOUT MIGA
MIGA was created in 1988 as a member of the World Bank Group to promote foreign direct investment in emerging economies by helping to mitigate the risks of restrictions on currency conversion and transfer, breach of contract by governments, expropriation, and war and civil disturbance; and offering credit enhancement to private investors and lenders.
Since its creation, MIGA has issued over $70 billion in guarantees across 123 developing countries in support of more than 1,000 projects.
Contacts:
In Washington:
Elizabeth Howton, (202) 458-5922, ehowton@worldbankgroup.org
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