Türkiye - Energy Efficiency in Public Buildings Project

Overview & Synopsis

Ratings of the Turkiye Energy Efficiency in Public Buildings for Turkiye were as follows: Outcome was satisfactory; Bank Performance was satisfactory; M&E Quality was substantial. Projects and programs should incorporate measures to sustain operations and maintenance (O&M), with emphasis on assigning and training O&M staff during building selection, institutionalizing O&M through clear policies, responsibilities, and budget lines via engagement with line ministries, and exploring provincial-level solutions such as pooling O&M staff and training for clusters of smaller buildings. Strong capacity for measurement and verification (M&V) is a prerequisite for revolving financing mechanisms and private sector participation; targeted M&V training, context-specific templates and guidelines, and expert review of M&V reports—especially in early implementation—are recommended to ensure transparent, reliable savings verification under complex real-world conditions. Seismic safety assessments should be integrated into project design, screening buildings for seismic safety before energy efficiency works and, where needed, implementing seismic and energy efficiency retrofits concurrently to reduce transaction costs and disruption through coordinated interventions. Simplified performance-based contracts can help energy service companies (ESCOs) enter comprehensive public building renovations and build capacity toward full ESCO models; these may combine partial performance-based payments with milestone-based input payments, shorten contract durations to enable faster cost recovery, focus on less complex measures, and disseminate lessons from successful pilots, while continuously refining contract structures based on implementation experience. Cost volatility should be managed by including price escalation clauses indexed to transparent cost measures or by utilizing United States dollar-based contracts in volatile currency environments, and by timely adjustment of project targets to reflect evolving cost realities; at the same time, deep renovations should continue to be promoted to advance long-term decarbonization objectives beyond short-term cost efficiency.