Expressing that the turnkey project model is a model that in which all the requirements during theconstruction phases of an investment are assumed by the contractor, Chairperson of the Board of Directors of Sintek Heavy Industries, a subsidiary of Sintek Group, Hüseyin Özkan said: “Companies in our country are capable of carrying out works with high added value through use of their engineering skills. However, in order to have our capabilities recognized on a global scale, Turkish companies need to be supported with regard to aspects such as financing, credibility and collateral capacities for which they are not able to produce solution on their own. Many companies cannot overcome these issues and penetrate into overseas markets”.
Risk of security of supply is present in the commodities market
Pointing out the significant decreases in commodity supply all over the world due to plants which discontinued production during the pandemic process, Chairperson of Sintek Heavy Board of Directors Hüseyin Özkan said: “We experienced difficulties in the availability of raw materials and intermediate products with the increasing demand, low supply and weak inventory status following the alleviation of the pandemic and a rapid rise have occurred in the prices as an inevitable outcome. The problem has become more severe for the contractors as the security of supply in commodities such as petroleum, coal and iron ore etc. which are the main inputs of the industry due to the ongoing war.”
Investments are going on in Iron and Cement Industry
Expressing that the production and consumption of iron-steel and cement will have a continuously increasing trend in the long run, despite having a periodic increase and decrease, Hüseyin Özkan added: “There is no doubt that iron-steel and cement investments are essential and profitable investments in the long run. There are world class companies which are very strong and represent our country successfully in this sector and they export significant quantities and carry out production in their overseas plants. Major iron-steel and cement producers in our country still go on making substantial investments. Although the pandemic might have caused delay in the processes to a certain extent, the investments did not stop.”
In particular, investments in the field of renewable energy will increase
Pointing out that no significant investment has been made for fossil fuel based power plants in our country in the last few years, Hüseyin Özkan said: “The ongoing investments are mostly on renewable resources. As to the field of renewable energy, we are experiencing a period where more and more end users are now investing in solar power plants installed on roofs in addition to the investments on the industrial scale. Additionally, Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant, in which we also taking part too is still under construction. Apart from this, there are ongoing and planned investments for ensuring compliance of power plants with the environmental criteria.Turkey has a highly developed capacity and infrastructure in terms of energy supply security. I believe that projects intended for both renewableresources and our own mines are more sustainable for our country in order to reduce foreign dependency. We anticipate that there will be one more major project in the energy sector this year and that investments will increase in the field of renewable energy.”
Turkish contractors rank among the top 3
Having also made statements about the global standing of the Turkish contractors Hüseyin Özkan said: “As you all know, Turkish Contractors are doing business all over the world. As the Turkish Contracting sector, we have been among the top three in the world for many years in terms of the number of companies rendering contracting services overseas. However, there are only a few companies that can undertake turnkey projects, particularly in the investments pertaining to the industry. We usually take part in labor-intensive projects if we dismiss the exceptions. Our country and our companies are capable of carrying out works with high added value through contribution of engineering efforts. However, in order to have our capabilities recognized on a global scale, most companies need to be supported with regard to aspects such as financing, credibility and collateral capacities that stand out as problems. Many companies cannot overcome these issues and penetrate into overseas markets”.
There is an increase in demands from overseas
Stating that they have established a company named Sintek BV in Amsterdam in order to have an organization that will independently handle the demands from overseas as a result of such increase, Hüseyin Özkan concluded his words by saying: “We commenced our studies for rendering services to foreign investors on the same basis as our foreign competitors and to compete under the same conditions through this affiliated company which is 100% owned by Sintek . We are satisfied with the requests received within such a short period.”