Leading Turkish farm tractors manufacturer received financing from EBRD

A new tractor plant and a more powerful engine for regional agriculture

30-5-2013 — /europawire.eu/ — A new tractor plant and a more efficient tractor engine will be built in Turkey with a loan from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

TürkTraktör, one of the leading manufacturers of farm tractors and other agricultural machinery, will receive €75 million financing arranged by the EBRD: €30 million for the EBRD’s own account and up to €45 million syndicated to commercial banks.

The loan will be used to modernise the company’s plant in Ankara and to build a brand new plant in the Erenler province of Sakarya in the Marmara region.

The EBRD financing will also support research and development and engineering support from TürkTraktör’s shareholder CNH Global, an Illinois-based manufacturer of agricultural equipment, enabling the company to build better engines and tractors for a more sustainable agriculture in the country and abroad. The technological excellence will then be passed by TürkTraktör to the local suppliers of tractor parts in a move to improve manufacturing practices and quality standards across the sector.

EBRD Director for Manufacturing and Services Frederic Lucenet said: “We are proud to support this innovative and dynamic company with our financing. TürkTraktör is a well-known producer in Turkey, and investing in a new plant and development of a more powerful and environmentally friendly engine will help them grow and increase exports. More efficient tractors will boost agriculture in Turkey and the wider region, will help save fuel – a big issue for farmers – and cut CO2 emissions in the atmosphere.”

TürkTraktör General Manager Marco Votta said: “As TürkTraktör, we laid the foundations of our new factory in Erenler, Adapazarı at the end of March. Research and development investments are of crucial importance for Turkey’s better use of its agricultural potential. With this loan we have agreed with the EBRD, we will be focusing on the financing required for our new factory, modernisation of our existing plant and development of new technologies”.

Since the beginning of its operations in Turkey in 2009, the EBRD has invested over €2.5 billion in the country, both in direct deals and through credit lines. Last year Turkey became the EBRD’s second-largest country of operations with €1 billion in new investments in 2012 alone.

Olga Rosca
Communications Adviser – Tel: +90 2123861113