Climate goals can no longer remain just political declarations – they must be transformed into projects that can be financed. This was the guiding message of the Istanbul Climate Finance Summit, which took place on 4 September at the Istanbul Finance Center and became one of the key preparatory forums before COP31 in Antalya.
The meeting, under the motto “From the vision for COP31 to financing climate action“, brought together representatives of the Turkish government, international financial institutions, banks, investors and businesses. The main topics were clean energy, green industrialization, sustainable cities, adaptation financing and mechanisms for mobilizing private capital.
Among the main participants in the opening were the Turkish Minister of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change and COP31 President Murat Kurum, the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Alparslan Bayraktar, the Vice President of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) Ajay Bhushan Pandey and representatives of the banking sector.
Kurum: Climate finance is an investment, not an expense
The opening discussion focused on the huge gap between the climate finance needed and available.
Murat Kurum stressed that the funds to combat climate change should not be seen as an additional expense, but as an investment that can prevent much greater economic and social losses in the future.
According to data presented by him at the forum, the global need for climate finance is now estimated at between $7.5 and $9 trillion, while the capital mobilized is approximately $1.9 trillion. This leaves a huge financial gap that cannot be filled by public funds alone.
Kurum called on world leaders to direct more resources to clean energy, electrification, water security, sustainable cities and green industry.
Bayraktar: Public funds will not be enough
Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar also delivered the same message.
According to him, the energy transition requires a fundamental change in the electricity infrastructure, but state budgets alone cannot provide the necessary capital.
“ Public funding alone will not be enough, “ Bayraktar said, emphasizing the need for the participation of private investors, development banks, international financial institutions and long-term institutional investors.
He said that Turkey alone will need at least $80 billion in investment in electricity infrastructure by 2035.
The country's energy policy, according to Bayraktar, must simultaneously achieve three goals - security of supply, less dependence on imported energy and implementation of climate commitments, including the goal of net zero emissions by 2053.
First concrete deal: 400 million euros for the Sea of Marmara
One of the most important practical results of the meeting was the signed agreement between Turkey and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.
The first stage envisages about 400 million euros in investments in environmental projects in the Sea of Marmara region. The financing will be mainly directed towards modern biological wastewater treatment facilities.
The project is directly related to the problems caused in recent years by the so-called sea slime – massive spread of marine slime in the highly industrialized region, which threatens ecosystems and fisheries.
The agreement was signed by Murat Kurum and AIIB Vice President Ajay Bhushan Pandey during the meeting in Istanbul.
For COP31, this is an important example of the principle that the Turkish presidency places at the center of its program - turning political climate goals into concrete, financed investments.
Green industry and small businesses
Serious attention was also paid to the transformation of industry.
A special session with the participation of the Istanbul Chamber of Industry, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and public sector representatives discussed the financing of green industrialization, the transition to low-carbon production and access to capital for small and medium-sized enterprises.
This is a particularly sensitive topic for Turkey, where a large part of the manufacturing sector is integrated into European supply chains and must gradually adapt to stricter carbon emissions requirements.
Financial institutions will increasingly have to consider decarbonization not only as an environmental issue, but also as a factor for companies' competitiveness.
Banks want more “financed“ projects
The Chairman of the Turkish Banks Association, Alpaslan Çakar, emphasized that climate change is already directly affecting economic growth, financial stability, trade and employment.
According to him, the big problem is not only the availability of capital, but also the lack of sufficiently well-structured projects that banks and investors can actually finance.
Çakar pointed out the need for a stronger connection between international financial resources and local investment opportunities.
This idea was also behind one of the central concepts of the forum – the transition from climate commitments to finance-ready projects, or projects with a clear financial structure, assessed risk and a real opportunity to attract capital.
Insurers warn about climate risk
The afternoon sessions also focused on climate risks for the financial system.
In the panel “Climate Risks and New Strategies“ representatives of the insurance sector discussed the role of insurance in natural disasters and adaptation to climate change.
The Secretary General of the Turkish Insurers Association, Özgür Obalı, stressed the need for better forecasting and modeling of climate risk, noting that a significant portion of assets exposed to natural disasters remain uninsured or underinsured.
Representatives of the Turkish catastrophe insurance pool DASK emphasized the link between proper risk pricing, prevention and limitation of future financial losses.
„Bridge“ between capital and projects
Among the initiatives discussed was the „Bridge“ mechanism proposed by Turkey, which aims to connect available climate capital with specific investment opportunities.
The idea is to transform financial promises into viable projects with measurable results – an approach that Turkey intends to make one of the leading themes of COP31.
This fits into the basic philosophy of the Turkish presidency: that COP31 should be a conference focused not so much on formulating new promises as on implementing the commitments already made.
From Istanbul to Antalya
The Istanbul forum was part of the preparations for COP31, which Turkey will host in Antalya in November.
The main task in the remaining weeks will be to translate international climate goals into the language of investments – how much does the transition cost, who bears the risk, and how private capital can be attracted to projects that are still perceived as too risky.
The first financial forum also showed the main contradiction ahead of COP31: there is capital in the global financial system, but a large part of developing economies continue to pay a higher price for it.
That is why the conversation in Istanbul was not simply about more climate finance, but about cheaper, longer-term and more accessible finance that can actually lead to new electricity grids, green factories, sustainable cities and adaptation projects.
It is precisely the ability to reduce the distance between climate promises and real investments that will likely be one of the main criteria by which the success of COP31 will be assessed.