Marinescape goes deep in Turkey

The €17 million, 7,500 square metre aquarium is in the basement structure of the new Forum Istanbul, one of Europe’s largest shopping centres. 

Marinescape’s 120 metre-long ‘SeaTube’ and moving walkway offer visitors a panoramic view of the tank housing 25,000 sea creatures in water from the Sea of Marmara, the inland sea that connects the Black and the Aegean Seas. 

The first Marinescape designed and built walk-through aquarium was Kelly Tarlton’s Underwater World in Auckland, which opened in 1984 and changed the old glass-tank-in-the-wall aquarium model forever. 

Marinescape has since designed and built more than 20 aquariums all over the world and is the only aquarium developer to offer a complete turn-key service.

Managing Director, Ian Mellsop, says Marinescape was exceptionally pleased to have been supported on the Istanbul project by New Zealand Export Credit Office (NZECO). 

NZECO is a New Zealand Government agency within Treasury that provides export trade credit insurance products to help cover the risk to exporters of non-payment for goods or services by a buyer, or of payment being delayed or denied because of an uncertain political environment.

“This is the first time we have utilised NZECO support and believe it could be of enormous assistance in the future as we seek to win projects in China and emerging markets.” 

He says that aquariums are becoming larger and more complex, increasing the level of financial commitments required for construction and operation.

“We had been developing the Istanbul project for three years and needed a debt facility to support the equity raising”.

“It was impossible to find a bank prepared to fund a New Zealand contractor-led commercial aquarium project of this scale, as it was an entirely new business proposition in Turkey.  The NZECO credit support for the project financing was a significant breakthrough for us at a critical time, as world credit markets were in meltdown.  Without this support, the project would most certainly have been lost to Marinescape and New Zealand.

“As it has turned out, it has been a major New Zealand success story, with a significant portion of the €17 million project cost being repatriated to New Zealand, more than 20 New Zealanders being employed directly on the project, and many more indirectly.”

“Even more importantly, this project has established Marinescape in the Mediterranean/Middle East market, with the prospect of at least three more projects stemming directly from the Istanbul aquarium.

“There are other intangible benefits of the project’s success as well, such as the Turks’ enormous respect for New Zealand’s capability, energy, ability, ingenuity and adaptability.  The aquarium has probably done more to raise the awareness of New Zealand in Turkey than any other event in recent times. 

“Around 5000 people a day are visiting the Turkuazoo Aquarium and I predict that it will come to occupy the same place in Turkish minds as Kelly Tarlton’s Underwater World does in the minds of New Zealanders.”

New Zealand Trade & Enterprise (NZTE) Country Manager in Turkey, Erhan Dagdemir, agrees and says the aquarium is expected to have a million visitors a year, including 100,000 students attending its environmental protection education programmes.

More information:

www.marinescape.co.nz

www.nzeco.govt.nz/exporters