Category: Business

Siemens to supply Turkish tunnel project

A view of Istanbul, Turkey's largest city. Turkey is launching major road and tunnelling infrastructure projects.

Siemens is to equip the Dorukhan Tunnel between Mengen and Devrek in Turkey with the latest power, lighting and ventilation equipment, along with the associated safety and communications systems.

The order was placed by KGM (Karayollari Genel Müdürlügü), Turkey’s General Directorate of Highways, and has a value in a single-digit million euro figure.

The turnkey handover of the new system is scheduled for January 2012. A project to equip the DAK (Düzce-Akcakoca-Eregli) tunnel system in the province of Zonguldak, placed with Siemens by KGM at the end of 2011, is already nearing completion.

The Turkish Transportation Ministry is currently mounting a great effort to develop the country’s highway network. In September 2009, together with Turkey’s General Directorate of Highways, KGM, the ministry presented plans for 12 new highway routes, which are due to be realised by 2023.

In the provinces of Kastamonu, Zonguldak and Düzce on the Black Sea, extensive construction projects are either already being realised or currently being triggered.

One such construction project is the 1,050m-long Dorukhan Tunnel on the Kastamonu Highway. Siemens is responsible for power supply and distribution for the tunnel, and will supply the entire communications and automation equipment.

The safety systems will include camera and video surveillance based on CCTV (closed circuit television). The Automatic Incident Detection System not only helps recognise traffic jams and accidents, but can also detect any smoke build-up.

With the help of sensors, modern lighting and ventilation systems monitor visibility and air quality. All of the ventilation, lighting, traffic control and safety systems are connected to the SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) control system, which also monitors them.

via Siemens to supply Turkish tunnel project | ConstructionWeekOnline.com.

June 27, 2011
Tokyo Electric May Give Technical Support to Turkey Nuclear Bid

Tokyo Electric Power Co. will consider providing technical support if asked by a Japanese group including Toshiba Corp. (6502) that’s seeking orders to build four nuclear power reactors for Turkey’s government.

“We haven’t make any decision on participating,” said Yoshinori Mori, a Tepco spokesman. “We’ll consider whether we can offer technical support if we get such a request.”

Tokyo Electric will probably be replaced by another utility, the Sankei newspaper reported earlier today, citing a Turkish government official it didn’t name. Talks between Turkey and the group have been suspended since the March 11 earthquake, Sankei said.

Tokyo Electric is reviewing its overseas businesses as it plans a restructuring, Mori said. The Turkish project isn’t included in the review as the utility hasn’t made a decision to participate, he said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Mariko Yasu in Tokyo at [email protected]

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Jim McDonald at [email protected]

via Tokyo Electric May Give Technical Support to Turkey Nuclear Bid – Bloomberg.

June 27, 2011
Turkey becomes world’s 15th biggest milk producer

According to a report by the National Mil Council, Turkey’s milk production increased fourfold to 13 million tons in 2010 over the previous year while exports of dairy products reached $168.86 million.

Turkey has become the world’s 15th biggest milk producing country.

According to a report by the National Mil Council, Turkey’s milk production increased fourfold to 13 million tons in 2010 over the previous year while exports of dairy products reached $168.86 million.

Cow’s milk accounts for 92.36 percent while sheep milk accounts for 5.85 percent and goat milk accounts for 1.53 percent of the total milk production.

In 2010, Turkey used more than 1 million tons of its milk production as drinking milk. 473 thousand tons of milk were used cheese production and 908 thousand tons in yogurt production.

Turkey’s milk production increased by 8.3 percent in the last five years and Turkey’s exports of dairy products rose by 89.26 percent in the same period.

AA

June 27, 2011
Renault electric car mass production in Turkey seen in a few months

Aybar made his remark at an event where Turkish Industry & Trade Minister Nihat Ergun took a test-drive with the first electric Fluence built in Turkey.

French carmaker Renault plans to start mass production of its electric cars in a couple of months at Turkey plant, a senior company official said on Friday.

Ibrahim Aybar, CEO of Renualt-Mais, a joint venture of Renault and Turkey-based Oyak, said that company’s plant in Bursa would build electric version of Fluence –a classic compact 4-door sedan– mostly for global markets.

Aybar did not elaborate on the date for start of mass production, nor the price tag in Turkey, however, he said it would require an extra monthly payment for battery lease somewhere around ?79 as set in Europe.

Aybar made his remark at an event where Turkish Industry & Trade Minister Nihat Ergun took a test-drive with the first electric Fluence built in Turkey and inaugurated a charge station at the ministry yard in Ankara.

Ergun said his ministry had ordered 5 Renault Fluence electric cars. Delivery of cars is expected in the near future.

Ergun also said that the car was very comfortable and easy-to-drive, adding that he would buy an electric for personal use.

According to information on Renault website, Fluence ZE will sell in certain countries at prices similar to those of comparably powerful diesel versions of Renault Fluence with the same equipment level. Prices will be between ?21,300 and ?26,000, depending on the local VAT rate and available tax incentive packages, excluding battery.

In France, for example, prices will start from ?21,300 with the ?5,000 tax incentive deducted. Customers will also subscribe to a monthly lease starting from ?79 (including VAT) to cover the battery.

AA

June 26, 2011
Bulgaria Gives Up on Trying to Make Gas Pipe to Turkey Part of Nabucco

The Bulgarian government is no longer trying to make the future gas interconnection between Bulgaria and Turkey a section of the EU-sponsored gas transit pipeline Nabucco, Economy Minister Traikov announced.

The gas pipeline connecting the natural gas networks of Bulgaria and Turkey could be ready by 2014, and through which Bulgaria could be receiving up to 5 billion cubic meters of natural gas per year, Bulgaria’s Minister of Economy, Energy, and Tourism Traicho Traikov told the Members of Parliament on Friday.

Back in 2010, Traikov was convinced that the future Bulgaria-Turkey gas interconnection would become “the first operational section” of the Nabucco pipeline. The idea was endorsed in the fall of 2010 by the Prime Ministers of Bulgaria and Turkey Boyko Borisov and Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the rationale being that the two countries could thus be entitled to use EU funds for the missing gas network link.

On Friday, however, Traikov admitted that the Bulgarian Economy Ministry is no longer pursuing this project – which means that the Bulgaria-Turkey gas interconnection will not coincide with Nabucco’s pipe – because this would make the launching of the Bulgaria-Turkey pipe “expensive and slow.”

Bulgaria’s decision to give up on merging of Nabucco and the Bulgaria-Turkey pipeline comes after in May 2011, Nabucco Gas Pipeline International GmbH pushed back the start of construction of its EUR 7.9 B pipeline to carry Caspian natural gas to Europe to 2013; thus, Nabucco is now expected to start operations in 2017 instead of 2015, as previously expected.

Traikov’s announcement about the gas interconnection with Turkey comes a day after his meeting with his counterpart from Azerbaijan Natiq Aliyev, who confirmed that Azerbaijan can start shipping to Bulgaria about 1 billion cubic meters of natural gas per year as soon as the gas links between Bulgaria and Turkey, and Bulgaria and Greece are completed.

On Thursday, Bulgaria’s state-owned gas company Bulgargaz replaced the CEO of its subsidiary Bulgartransgaz, one of the major arguments for the change being the need to speed up the construction of the Bulgaria-Turkey gas pipe.

The working group of the Bulgarian government has concluded that the best option for the Bulgaria-Turkey gas interconnection would be if it is built by Bulgartransgaz and Turkey’s state company Botas.

via Bulgaria: Bulgaria Gives Up on Trying to Make Gas Pipe to Turkey Part of Nabucco – Novinite.com – Sofia News Agency.

June 26, 2011
Turkish Airlines Named “Best Airline in Europe” by Skytrax

Turkish Airlines Named “Best Airline in Europe” by Skytrax

By Turkish Airlines

ISTANBUL, June 23, 2011 — /PRNewswire/ — Turkish Airlines has been named the winner of three distinguished awards by Skytrax, according to the results of the 2011 evaluation: “Best Airline in Europe,” “Best Premium Economy Seats” and “Best Airline in Southern Europe.” Skytrax is a world recognized brand associated with air travel excellence in the 21st century, providing unique expertise to the world airline and airport industry through the most professional Audit and Service Benchmarking programs of Product and Service Quality.

The Skytrax World Airline Awards Ceremony took place in Paris, France. During a 10 month survey period, 18.8 million airline customers from over 100 different nationalities participated in this customer satisfaction survey. The award was given to Turkish Airlines’ General Manager Temel Kotil, Ph.D. by the CEO of Skytrax, Edward Plaisted.

One of the fastest growing airline companies in the world, Turkish Airlines has received several “Passenger Choice Awards” by Skytrax over the years. In 2010, the airline won the Skytrax award for the “Best Airline in Southern Europe” in addition to the award for the “World’s Best Economy Class Onboard Catering” for its partnership with the world-renowned Turkish Do&Co. The year prior, Turkish Airlines won the “Skytrax World Aviation Award 2009,” also known as the “Oscar of the Aviation Industry.”

Turkish Airlines, Inc.

About Turkish Airlines:

Established in 1933 with a fleet of only five airplanes, Star Alliance member, Turkish Airlines is today a four star airline company with a fleet of 169 aircraft flying to 180 destinations around the world, comprising 41 domestic and 139 international destinations. Visit www.turkishairlines.com for more information.

About Star Alliance:

Turkish Airlines is a member of the Star Alliance network which was established in 1997. Overall, the Star Alliance network offers 21.000 daily flights to 1,160 destinations in 181 countries.

Turkish Airlines, Office of Media Relations, General Administrative Building 34830 Yesilkoy-Istanbul PRESS AND COMMUNICATIONS LINE: +90 (212) 463 63 63(11153-11173), Fax: +90 (212) 465 20 78, e-mail: [email protected]

CONTACT: Bruno Guerra, +1-212-277-4318

SOURCE Turkish Airlines

via Turkish Airlines Named “Best Airline in Europe” by Skytrax – PR Newswire – sacbee.com.

June 24, 2011