Turkish Forum

Category: Business

  • Gerry Weber Plans Clothing Stores in Turkey With Local Partner

    Gerry Weber Plans Clothing Stores in Turkey With Local Partner

    Gerry Weber International AG (GWI1), Germany’s second-largest women’s clothing maker, said it plans to open stores in Istanbul by 2012 as the first step in setting up a chain of outlets across Turkey.

    Gerry Weber aims to start two shops with a local partner as early as the end of this year, Gulay Taskiran, head of the retailer’s Turkish unit, said today in a telephone interview.

    “We are in talks with four to five leading Turkish retail groups,” she said, declining to identify any candidates. “We want to sign a franchise agreement with one of them this year that fits best in our style and quality.”

    The German company, based in Halle in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, had 431 stores worldwide under its own brand and 2,122 outlets through other retailers such as space at department stores as of April 30, according to the company’s fiscal second-quarter report. Gerry Weber may open as many as 15 stores in Turkey, Taskiran said.

    The company also plans to expand purchases from Turkish textile manufacturers from about 80 million euros ($115 million) a year currently, Taskiran said. Suppliers in the country already account for 90 percent of jersey fabric that Gerry Weber uses in making clothes, she said.

    To contact the reporter on this story: Ercan Ersoy in Istanbul at eersoy@bloomberg.net.

    To contact the editor responsible for this story: Benedikt Kammel at bkammel@bloomberg.net.

    via Gerry Weber Plans Clothing Stores in Turkey With Local Partner – Bloomberg.

  • Unlike European countries, LPG is a popular type of fuel in Turkey

    Unlike European countries, LPG is a popular type of fuel in Turkey

    Unlike many European countries, LPG is a very popular type of fuel in Turkey. The Turkish LPG market ranks 14th in the world (1.5% of worldwide consumption in 2009) and 2nd in Europe, trailing only Russia. In 2010, LPG consumption stood at an estimated 3.68mn tons, representing 17.8% of total fuels consumed in Turkey. 85% of the LPG that reaches the Turkish consumer is imported, coming mostly from Algeria, Kazakhstan, Russia, Norway and Nigeria. The segmental split of LPG consumption in 2010 was 68% auto-LPG, 29% cylinder LPG and 3% bulk. Aygaz maintained its market leadership position in 2010, with 1.04mn tons of LPG sold and an overall market share of 29%. Aygaz services the Turkish market with the Aygaz and Mogaz (100% subsidiary) brands.

    Auto-LPG had a 13.6% share of the total 18.4mn tons in automotive fuels sold in 2010, marking a record level. Below we illustrate the development of the composition of automotive fuels in Turkey.

    In the period from 2000 to 2010, the popularity of auto-LPG has grown substantially, recording a CAGR of 6.9%. This was mainly driven by the cost advantage of LPG over the other fuel types, especially gasoline. While gasoline demand was more than 118% higher than that of auto-LPG in the 2000, consumption of both fuel types was nearly equal in 2009. In 2010, auto-LPG demand clearly surpassed that of gasoline. The cost advantage of auto-LPG over gasoline stems from the difference in the tax treatment of the two products, while LPG as a commodity is in fact more expensive. While the annual average taxes (special consumption tax plus VAT) applied to gasoline was TRY 2.47/ liter in 2010, it was TRY 1.8/liter for low-sulfur diesel, TRY 1.71/liter for rural diesel and TRY 1.06/liter for auto-LPG.

    The Turkish auto-LPG market is dominated by the large fuel retailers. With 578,000 tons sold and a market share of 23% in 2010 (4.7% is attributable to Mogaz), Aygaz is the market leader, followed by Petrol Ofisi, Shell and BP. At the end of 2010, Aygaz had a total of 1,226 auto-LPG dealers across Turkey.

    The growth in auto-LPG over the past 10 years, however, was not enough to compensate for the deterioration in the demand for other LPG segments, namely cylinder and bulk LPG. As can be seen in the graph below, auto-LPG sales have grown strongly since 2001, while both cylinder and bulk LPG have seen a sharp decline in consumption. This has led to a slight drop in overall Turkish LPG consumption, from 3.8mn tons in 2000 to 3.7mn tons in 2010. Going forward, we expect the trend from the past to continue, with the demand for bulk LPG reaching a floor and cylinder LPG consumption contracting further, albeit at a slower rate. We are optimistic on the future development of auto-LPG and project its demand to gradually increase. Overall, we reckon with a CAGR of 1.6% in the Turkish LPG consumption for 2010-15.

    Consumption of cylinder LPG has fallen from 2.13mn tons in 2000 to 1.1mn tons in 2010, recording a negative CAGR of -6.7%. The reason for the contraction is that LPG cylinders as an energy source have increasingly been substituted for by natural gas, as it is cheaper, the taxes are lower, the natural gas infrastructure has been expanded in Turkey and the average income has risen, making initial conversion costs more easily affordable. In 2010, Aygaz (incl. Mogaz) had a market share of 39% with 409,000tons of cylinder LPG sold.

    In March 2011, Aygaz announced that it purchased the usage rights of cylinder gas dealership agreements and associated licenses from Totalgaz for TRY 36mn. The deal is dependent on the approval of the Competition Board. Adding Totalgaz’s market share of 4.5% to that of Aygaz results in a dominating 42%-43% share (adjusted for overlaps) of the cylinder LPG market for the latter.

    The enormous increase in natural gas sales by BOTAS, the Turkish state owned natural gas pipeline operator, since the late 1980s shows the commodity’s growing popularity in Turkey. As described above, cylinder LPG and bulk LPG sales have contracted by a negative CAGR of -6.7% and -20.0%, respectively, from 2000 to 2010, while BOTAS’ natural gas sales recorded CAGR of 8.0% over the same period. As natural gas is a substitute for LPG, its growth was the main reason for the deterioration of cylinder and bulk LPG sales figures. The graph below shows the growing popularity of natural gas in Turkey (BOTAS only).

    For the future, we believe that the trends of the recent past will remain in place. Our estimates are based on a steady escalation of natural gas sales, despite the crisis-related drop in 2009 and 2010, at the cost of cylinder and bulk LPG consumption. Thus, both of these LPG segments will be of little attractiveness for Aygaz and other distributors looking for sales growth. However, the opposite is true for auto-LPG, which we forecast to retain its popularity, due to its cost advantage compared to other fuel types, and therefore expect to remain on its growth path.

    Source : bne

    via Balkans.com Business News : Unlike European countries, LPG is a popular type of fuel in Turkey.

  • Iranians Play Major Role In Turkey’s Thriving Economy

    Iranians Play Major Role In Turkey’s Thriving Economy

    TEHRAN, June 20 (Bernama) — A recent report published by Turkey underlined that Iranian investors and corporations have contributed a major role in Turkey’s flourishing economy in recent months, Iran’s Fars News Agency (FNA) said.

    The report said a total of 1,401 companies were established in Turkey with the help of foreign investors, 259 of which have been established by Iranian investors.

    German investors participated in setting up 159 companies in Turkey, while Azeri investors helped with the establishment of 86 companies and Russians cooperated in setting up 52 Turkey-based corporations.

    Foreign investors participated in the establishment of a total of 88.27 percent of the capital invested in the newly-established companies in Turkey.

    Iran and Turkey have in recent years increased their cooperation in all the various fields of economy, security, trade, education, energy and culture.

    The two sides have exchanged several politico-economic delegations during the last few months.

    Iranian Economy Minister Seyed Shamseddin Hosseini announced in April that Turkey had replaced Britain as Tehran’s fourth trade partner.

    “We are very pleased that Turkey has replaced Britain as Iran’s fourth economic partner,” Hosseini said in a meeting with Turkish State Minister Hayati Yazichi at the time.

    — BERNAMA

    via BERNAMA – Report: Iranians Play Major Role In Turkey’s Thriving Economy.

  • Sir Brian Souter in buy-out of Turkish ferry operator

    Sir Brian Souter in buy-out of Turkish ferry operator

    Stagecoach transport mogul Sir Brian Souter has led a buy-out of Istanbul’s main ferry operator for £528m.

    The sale by the Turkish city’s government includes 52 vessels that transport more than 50 million people each year, across the Bosphorus and around the Sea of Marmaris.

    The sale includes 52 vessels which sail across the Bosphorus and around the Sea of Marmaris
    The sale includes 52 vessels which sail across the Bosphorus and around the Sea of Marmaris

    The chief executive of Stagecoach transport group used his investment company to lead the buyout.

    His investor group has a 30% stake in Istanbul Deniz Otobuslen (IDO) ferries.

    Souter Investments is partnered by Ann Gloag, Sir Brian’s sister and co-founder of Perth-based Stagecoach, Edinburgh financier Sir Angus Grossart and three Turkish-based companies, including the operator of the country’s largest airport.

    The sale, denominated in US dollars at $861m, includes 25 sea buses, 19 fast ferries and 17 conventional ferries.

    There are nine inter-city and five inner-city lines serving 35 piers, with sales last year of £142m.

    ‘New heights’

    Newly-knighted Sir Brian said: “I am confident we will take IDO to new heights of success by improving everything from fast ferry frequency to catering.

    “Our goal is to ensure motorists opt for seabus and ferry transportation, rather than making long and frustrating road journeys in and around the congested Istanbul road network.”

    Souter Investments also owns two urban bus companies and a ferry operator in New Zealand.

    Last week, the investment firm launched a new express coach service between Berlin, Bratislava, Prague and Vienna.

    Souter Investments extend to stakes in yacht-builder Sunseeker International, insurance company esure and the price comparison website gocompare.com.

    Other competitors for the IDO ferry operator included international ferry operator Stena and Turkey’s largest conglomerate, Koc Holding.

    via BBC News – Sir Brian Souter in buy-out of Turkish ferry operator.

  • REW Istanbul 2011 closed with 50 percent growth

    REW Istanbul 2011 closed with 50 percent growth

    Istanbul, Turkey — The International Recycling, Environmental Technologies and Waste Management Trade Fair – the REW Istanbul 2011 – has been held for 7th time this year. 307 companies from 23 countries such as Italy, Spain, China and Taiwan participated. As the most important international event in its own industry and in its region, REW Istanbul gathered solid waste, waste water, waste gas and green energy under the same roof. With 10.472 professional visitors from 34 countries the REW Istanbul not only reached its targets: The Istanbul Fair Organization finished the fair with a growth of more than 50 percent.

    Interested visitors at the fair Foto: Istanbul Fair Organization
    Interested visitors at the fair Foto: Istanbul Fair Organization

    Germany was one of the top countries that showed the biggest interest in the fair both in terms of exhibitors and visitors. In recycling and waste management industries at which they are good at, the German consider REW Istanbul as the first step to expand to other countries in this geography through new partnerships and by investment in Turkey. As well as their individual participation, the German attendees also showed collective participation in the fair with Hessen and Bavaria States.

    Growing by 50 percent on average compared to last year, REW Istanbul continued its consistent development in 2011 both in terms of square-meter and number of visitors. The most important fair organization of not only Turkey, but also the Balkans, Middle East and Middle Asia on the international level in environmental technologies. REW Istanbul successfully kept its ‘international’ title with a participation rate of international visitors more than 30 percent. This year REW Istanbul that drew professional visitors from 34 countries saw the intense interest of local and foreign investors due to its 60 billion Euro market volume Turkey has in environmental technologies.

    The panels and conferences that took place within the scope of REW Istanbul 2011 drew a lot of attention. There was high participation during the ‘New Practices in Waste Management’ session organized by Turkish Republic Ministry of Forestry and Environment and TUCEV. Environmental Protection and Control Managers, Cleaning Operations Managers and Personnel of local administrations met at the panel organized by Marmara Union of Municipalities (MBB). Organized by the Turkish branch of REC (Regional Environment Center) – one of the globally most respected environmental organizations-, ‘Project On Capacity Development in Environment Waste Incineration Training’ panel had an interested audience. Furthermore, there were conferences about ‘Project on Carbon Management of Premises’, ‘Waste Management’ and ‘Sustainable Resource Management’ issues which set the agenda in the industry.

    With the matchmaking event organized by Sabanci University and EEN (Enterprise Europe Network) local investors met European company representatives and discussed partnership prospects. Throughout the organization many one-to-one interviews took place and the first steps to further partnerships were taken.

    Quelle: Istanbul Fair Organization (IFO)

    via RECYCLINGPORTAL – REW Istanbul 2011 closed with 50 percent growth.

  • Jewers Doors Gets Contract for Huge HABOM Project in Turkey

    Jewers Doors Gets Contract for Huge HABOM Project in Turkey

    By NewsDesk

    Turkish Technic is establishing a new international maintenance, repair and overhaul centre within Istanbul’s Sabiha Gökçen International Airport under the title the HABOM Project (aviation maintenance, repair and overhaul centre).

    Two new hangars are to be built, one for servicing narrow body aircraft, the other for wide body aircraft. Jewers Doors will design, supply and install the world-renowned Esavian Type 126 hangar doors on each of the hangars. The openings are approximately 254m wide by 14m high (narrow body hangar) and 226m wide by 22 m high (wide body hangar).

    Esavian hangar doors feature state-of-the-art controls and are fitted to the majority of super hangars built for maintenance of A380 aircraft. They are also in service on hangars of all sizes with major airlines, MROs, FBOs, royal families and armed forces worldwide.

    The stated aim of the HABOM project is that all facilities will be constructed as environmentally friendly designs which will provide maximum energy savings. An unlimited choice of cladding materials is available for use with Esavian doors enabling them to be highly insulated, secure and translucent. They conform to the tough leadership in energy and environmental design (LEED) internationally recognised green building certification system and are the greenest doors available making them the most suitable for harsh environments.

    Jewers Doors recently completed the refurbishment of doors on a two-bay narrow-body aircraft hangar for Turkish Technic at its existing maintenance, repair and overhaul facilities at Istanbul Ataturk International Airport.

    Managing director, Chris Jewers, says: “The HABOM project is likely to establish Istanbul as the aircraft maintenance hub for the region and we are very pleased to be part of it. Our unrivalled experience of designing environmentally-friendly hangar doors of any size, anywhere in the world, has once again secured Jewers Doors a major contract.”

    Source: Jewers Doors

    via Jewers Doors Gets Contract for Huge HABOM Project in Turkey | LogisticsWeek.