Astaldi | Gebze Izmir Motorway

A consortium led by Italy's Astaldi was awarded the concession for the construction and operation of the highway that will run from Gebze, near Istanbul, to Izmir. The consortium, consisting of sector giants Nurol, Özaltın, Makyol, Astaldı, Yüksel and Göçay, bid the shortest construction and operation term for the İzmit Bay Crossing and Bursa-Balıkesir-İzmir Highway Project. The consortium offered to build and then operate the projects for 22 years and four months, and then transfer it to the state. The highway will be 421 kilometers long. The project is expected to cut highway travel times between Istanbul to İzmir from six and a half hours to three and a half hours, resulting in an annual savings of 870 million Turkish Liras.

Astaldi Group has been active in Turkey for over 20 years in the water and transport sectors. The hydroelectric plants built by Astaldi or its subsidiaries in Turkey are Karakaya (1976-1987), Ceyhan (1987-1991) and Berke dams (1992-1996). Activities in Turkey are still going ahead with contract to build the Istanbul underground line between Kadikoy and Kartal, as well as the Halic Bridge over the Golden Horn.

Mavi Boncuk | Anatolian Motorway Construction period 1985-2007

The Anatolian motorway, which links Istanbul and Ankara, represents the pivot of the Turkish road network. Astaldi Group played an important role in its construction and was responsible for building the Gümüsova-Gerede section. The route, designed in accordance with the most advanced European standards (Trans European Motorway Standards), is 116km long with 12km of viaducts and 3km of tunnels. This area is geologically unstable and runs across a secondary branch of the Anatolian fault. The Bolu tunnel, a double-tube tunnel with three lanes in each direction measuring 2,950 metres, is located along this section. The viaducts are also impressive and include Viaduct 1 which survived the 1999 earthquake. It measures 2,313 metres in length and features two carriageways.