Indonesian conglomerates and family-owned developers have spent the past decade converting former factory sites in Jakarta and Surabaya into mixed-use and logistics assets. Türkiye offers a parallel opportunity set, at a different point in the cycle, with a clearer regulatory path in most municipalities. For Indonesian investors comfortable with brownfield economics, industrial land conversion in Türkiye's major metros deserves a serious look.
Where the Opportunity Sits
Istanbul's older industrial belts, along the Golden Horn's northern edge, in parts of Kartal and Pendik on the Anatolian side, and pockets of Izmir's Aliaga corridor, still carry manufacturing-era zoning (sanayi) even though production has largely relocated to organized industrial zones (OSB) further from the city core. This mismatch between legacy zoning and actual land use is the source of the opportunity: municipalities are actively rezoning these parcels toward mixed-use, residential, and logistics classifications as part of broader urban transformation programs, and early movers who understand the process can acquire land ahead of the value uplift that follows a zoning change.
Zoning Conversion : The process runs through the local municipality's imar (development plan) office, with input from the metropolitan municipality on larger parcels. A rezoning application typically requires a current land survey, an environmental site assessment, and a proposed development concept that aligns with the municipality's stated transformation goals for the district. Timelines vary widely, from under a year in districts with an active transformation master plan to several years where no plan yet exists. This is the single biggest variable in underwriting a brownfield acquisition in Türkiye, and it is worth commissioning independent local counsel to assess realistic timing before signing anything.
Environmental and Remediation Considerations
Former industrial sites in Türkiye are subject to the Ministry of Environment's soil contamination regulations, which require a preliminary site assessment before any change of use is approved. For light manufacturing or warehousing sites this is often straightforward. For sites with a history of heavy industry, metalworking, or chemical processing, remediation costs can be material and should be scoped by an independent environmental consultant before the land price is agreed, not after. Indonesian investors used to Jakarta's brownfield remediation norms will find the Turkish process procedurally similar but administered at the municipal rather than national level in most cases, which means outcomes can vary by district.
Structuring the Acquisition
Most brownfield deals in Türkiye are structured as either a direct land purchase followed by a rezoning application, or a conditional purchase agreement that closes only once rezoning is secured. The second structure shifts timing risk to the seller and is generally preferable for foreign buyers unfamiliar with a given municipality's approval pace. A local project representative who can attend municipal meetings, track application status, and interpret informal signals from the planning office is close to essential here, since much of the process runs on relationships and precedent rather than published timelines.
Financing and Returns
Because rezoned land carries a meaningful value premium over its as-zoned state, brownfield conversion in Türkiye tends to reward patient capital more than leveraged, short-hold strategies. Bank financing for pre-rezoning land is limited, so most successful deals are equity-funded through the entitlement phase, with construction financing layered in once the zoning outcome is secured and a development permit (yapi ruhsati) is in hand. Indonesian family offices and developers with a multi-year horizon and in-house construction capability are typically the best-positioned buyers for this strategy, since they can carry the entitlement period without relying on early debt.
A Practical Starting Point
Before committing capital, Indonesian investors should commission a zoning history report for any target parcel, covering the current classification, the municipality's published or informal transformation plans for the surrounding district, and comparable rezoning cases nearby. This single document, combined with an environmental screening, gives a realistic picture of both timeline and cost before a purchase agreement is drafted. Türkiye's brownfield pipeline is deep and underexploited relative to more mature European markets, but the returns depend entirely on getting the entitlement process right from the first meeting with the municipality.