Public service concession agreements in Izmir from the Reform period to the Republic

In the Ottoman State, the use of concession agreements in public services started in 19th century and mostly European entrepreneurs invested in railway construction, mines, and urban infrastructure using these concession agreements. In the 19th century, the Ottoman State signed trade treaties with United Kingdom, France and some other European countries between 1838 and 1846 to further liberalize its trade regime. These treaties exempted foreigners from internal customs, lifted the bans on certain export items, abolished state monopolies and in turn led to exports of abundant and cheap commodities to Europe and imports of processed goods from Europe. All this meant a wide open Ottoman markets for European states. These concession agreements and treaties led to a great deal of foreign capital investments in the Ottoman State especially after the Reform Period. These investments included railways, ports, lighthouses, communications, mines, and certain public services such as coal gas, water, tramway, electricity etc. This study aims to investigate the developments in the local public services in İzmir and water, lighting gas, electricity and tram concessions during the transition period from Reformation to Republic.