Billions of revenue Why Turkey opens the largest zinc manufacturing facility?

Turkey is preparing to open the country's largest zinc mining plant with a value of 102 million dollars, which would completely eliminate Turkey's imports of zinc by 2023, amounting to one billion dollars annually.

Turkey's only $102 million zinc plant opens in Siirt on November 20. (AA)

The countdown has begun for the inauguration of the largest zinc-recycling facility in Turkey. The plant, located in the southeastern city of Siirt, will open on November 20, with the participation of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

This factory comes at the forefront of the strategic steps taken by the Turkish government in recent years in order to reduce its dependence on imports from abroad, which causes a deficit in the Turkish trade balance despite the fact that exports reached more than 200 billion dollars during the past year, as well as creating thousands of opportunities Working in an area that witnesses terrorist attacks from time to time by the PKK terrorist organization.

Through the joint Turkish-Qatari investment, whose initial value amounted to about 102 million dollars, the only zinc alloy production facility in Turkey was built on a land area of ​​145 acres, and it will provide about 3,000 job opportunities during the first phase, to later reach 7,500 opportunities. Work after completing other investments.

Zinc mining localization

During the company’s meeting in Istanbul on November 6, Honorary President of Lineer Metal AS, Yasin Aktay, said, “Our goal is to completely eliminate Turkey’s zinc imports by 2023.”

He added, "Our facilities will reduce Turkey's zinc imports by 40% by producing 90,000 tons in the first phase. We aim to increase capacity over time and raise the investment amount to 500 million dollars, and the zinc we produce to 250,000 tons."

The plant is expected to produce about 40% of the zinc ingots consumed by the country during its first phase, which will help reduce the value of the trade balance deficit by about $400 million.” Total amounting to one billion US dollars.

In addition to mining zinc and completely localizing its production, the company will build two new plants for mining lead, silver and sulfuric acid.

local raw materials

For his part, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the company that owns the plant, Fikret Biderman, stated that the raw materials for the production of zinc and lead will be 100% supplied from Turkey, and provided the following information: “Until 15 years ago, our rich reserves were not discovered as they are today. However, Rich raw material deposits needed for zinc production have been discovered in Hakkari and Sirnak. Production in these areas has just reached our agenda."

Biderman noted that there was a lack of knowledge on this subject. So we have a billion dollars in imports. "The raw materials of zinc and lead will be supplied from Hakkari, Sirnak and Siirt. Production in this field will be 100% local and national."

Biedermann continued, "The return of mineral exploration activities in the southeast will be great for Turkey, especially in the long term. There are very good developments. There are important mineral deposits. The mineral deposits discovered in the southeast excite me as much as the discovery of natural gas in the Black Sea." With regional and national integration, the region is now free from terrorism, and this type of investment is one of the efforts that will increase development in the region."

3000 job opportunities

In the first project phase, the company will provide about 3,000 job opportunities, 1,900 direct jobs and 1,100 indirect jobs in the cities of southeastern Turkey, Şırnak, Hakkari and Siirt. Yasin Aktay stated that 500 people will work in the factory in Siirt, and about 2500 in the mines in the cities of Kari and Şırnak.

Aktay pointed out that the number of employment will rise to 7,500 people when other investments are completed. "We are making the largest economic industrial investment ever in Siirt, even in the region," he added. Which is one of the most important steps in combating terrorism by providing real job opportunities in a region that witnessed many terrorist acts in the past.

While Fikret Biderman mentioned that 95% of those who will work in the factory and in the mining will be residents of the region (Sirt, Şırnak and Hakkari), which will contribute to reducing unemployment to some extent in these cities.