Beko Urges Aligned Climate, Trade and Finance Policies at COP31
As carbon rules reshape sourcing and investment, Beko says manufacturers need climate, trade and industrial policies that work together—and financing suited to factory and supply-chain transitions. Company executives Fatih Özkadı and Barış Alparslan made that case at COP31 panels in Antalya during the summit’s first week.
The European Union’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) entered its definitive phase at the start of 2026. The European Commission has also proposed extending it from 1 January 2028 to around 180 downstream products with high steel or aluminium content, including domestic appliances. That proposal still requires adoption.
Beko Chief Sustainability, Quality, and Customer Care Officer Fatih Özkadı said misaligned carbon pricing, trade measures and industrial policies can increase costs across integrated supply chains and leave manufacturers with less to invest in decarbonisation. He called for recognition of carbon prices effectively paid in Türkiye, practical reporting requirements and product-by-product assessment of any CBAM extension.
Beko manufactures appliances in Türkiye and the EU. The company said three of its plants—refrigerator and dishwasher facilities in Türkiye and a washing machine plant in Romania—belong to the World Economic Forum’s Global Lighthouse Network. The Romanian site also has the Sustainability Lighthouse designation.
Beko CFO Barış Alparslan said industrial decarbonisation depends on turning transition plans into projects that can secure financing. Manufacturers, he said, need long-term capital, suitable risk-sharing and borrowing costs that reflect the time required to change factories and supply chains. In December 2025, Beko signed its first sustainability-linked loan: a €200 million, five-year facility from the International Finance Corporation. Its performance indicators cover greenhouse gas emissions reductions and women’s representation in the workforce.
COP31 is the first climate summit since publication of the Baku to Belém Roadmap to 1.3T, which sets out how climate finance for developing countries could rise to USD 1.3 trillion annually by 2035. Özkadı spoke on panels on 10 and 11 November; Alparslan joined two financing panels on 13 November. Beko attended COP31 alongside Koç Holding, a COP31 Global Business Partner.
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