Automotive Exports May 2023

1

Monthly automotive aftermarket magazine
GROUP CHAIRMAN
H. FERRUH ISIK
PUBLISHER:
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Competitive and innovative…
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The Turkish automotive industry have been able to consolidate and restructure its
market share both at home and abroad. The exports by Turkish automotive sector,
which is one of the major driving force of Turkish economy, reached remarkable
figures in the last decade. Initially, the majority of the market development was
based on imports and some level of local system integration. Turkey has become a
crucial production platform for global automotive manufacturers.
The proven success in the exports markets, however, depends on close technical
links with industrialized countries and the willingness of their foreign partners to
integrate their Turkish counterparts into their production-distribution networks as
regular suppliers of high quality, low-cost components.
Turkish producers of automotive parts and components have attained high
standards reflected by large export volumes to many industrialized countries.
There are numerous producers of automotive components and services in Turkey.
More than half of these manufacturers compete in global markets and set high
standards of export figures.
The Turkish automotive supplier industry produces almost all types of parts,
components and spare parts such as engines and engine parts, power train parts
and components, brake and clutch parts and components, hydraulic and pneumatic
systems, suspension systems, security systems, rubber and plastic parts, chassis,
frames and parts, casting and forging, electrical equipment and parts, lighting
systems, accumulator batteries, seats etc.
As known, our publications remain at the service of those businesses people
seeking to increase their share in the increasingly competitive foreign markets.
This month, we participate in Autopromotec 2023, Bologna, the specialized
international exhibition of automotive equipment and aftermarket products, As for
the next month, we will participate inAutomechanika Istanbul, Eurasia’s number
one OEM and aftermarket event. It brings together all relevant professionals from
the automotive manufacturing, distribution and repair sectors in the region and it
provides opportunities for small and middle enterprises to step up in the market.
We are convinced that the events would be instrumental to increase business
opportunities in the automotive industry as usual.
We wish all business people success and lucrative business.
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automotiveexport
automotiveexports

Autopromotec
2023, Bologna
offers new
opportunities
The 30th edition of Autopromotec, the
most specialized international exhibition
of automotive equipment and aftermarket
products, will be held May 21 – 24, 2023 at
the Bologna Trade Fair Center.
According to officials of the event,
branded from its earliest beginnings as an
“international exhibition”, Autopromotec
(back then called SARP – Exhibition of
Tyre Retreading Equipment) was born in
1965 in Rome thanks to an AIRP (Italian
Tyre Retreaders Association) initiative
meant to give visibility to the technological
developments experienced by the
retreading sector in those years.
In 1967 the exhibition, now held in
Bologna, launched the biennial formula
still popular nowadays. A new phase begins
in 1973, and SARP is partnered with SIAC
(International Exhibition of Equipment, Car
repair garages and Car body shops), and in
1991 the two exhibitions join together to
form one, called Autopromotec.
The big turning point occurs in 2005, when
Autopromotec includes new product
sectors such as spare parts, components
and car service to embrace the whole
automotive aftermarket.
Autopromotec represents a selection of
specialized trade shows where attendees
can, thanks to the division of the show
floor into sector-related halls, plan custommade
visits based on their professional
interests. The exclusive approach adopted
by Autopromotec makes the show a
showcase of cutting edge technologies,
innovations, new products and market
opportunities which are a benchmark for
the sector.
The exhibition has established an enviable
reputation as a specialized, representative
and professional event for highly
qualified exhibitors (only manufacturers
and authorized dealers) and, in its fiftyyear
history, it has kept pace with the
technological and professional growth of
the automotive sector, becoming a mustsee
for the supply and demand network.
Autopromotec is the place where business
opportunities turn into global networking
strategies.
May 2023 10

4,870 electric car registrations in 1st quarter
Electric cars’ share of new registrations in
Türkiye more than doubled from 1.1% in
January-March 2022 to 2.4% in the same
period this year.
During the first quarter of 2023, 4,870
electric cars were registered in Türkiye, the
country’s statistical authority TurkStat said.
In the three-month period, 460,910 road
motor vehicles were registered in the
country, including 204,666 cars.
The share of gasoline-powered vehicles
among registrations in the first quarter was
at 66.6%, down from 70.5% in the same
period last year.
Diesel-powered vehicles’ share was up to
20.5% from 16.5% over the same period,
while hybrid cars’ share dropped to 8.5%
from 9.5%.
The share of LPG-powered vehicles also
dropped to 2% from 2.4%.
In Türkiye, as of the end of March, the
number of road motor vehicles reached
26.94 million; cars’ share was at 53.7%,
small trucks 16.1%, motorcycles 15.9%,
tractors 7.9%, trucks 3.5%, minibuses 1.8%,
buses 0.8% and special purpose vehicles
0.3%. The country’s first indigenous electric
car brand Togg, which began to sell its first
model T10X in the domestic market, is
set to deliver 20,000 units of electric cars
within this year.
Over the last year, electric car registrations
in the country totaled 8,312 units.
May 2023 12

Turkish unmanned jet Kızılelma,
drone Akıncı conduct formation flight
Türkiye’s homegrown unmanned fighter
aircraft, Bayraktar Kızılelma, has achieved
another milestone in its flight test
campaign.
According to a statement by the developing
company, Baykar, the campaign is
progressing as planned.
During the ninth and 10th flight tests at
the Akıncı Flight Training and Test Center in
the Çorlu district of northwestern Tekirdağ
province, Bayraktar Kızılelma, the country’s
first unmanned fighter jet, successfully
conducted a formation flight with Baykar’s
Bayraktar Akıncı unmanned combat aerial
vehicle (UCAV).
This marks the first time that two
unmanned aerial vehicles have flown
together in formation.
The Bayraktar Kızılelma project, which has
successfully produced two prototypes,
is currently in the development and
production phase. As part of the
TEKNOFEST 2023 event, the public will
have the opportunity to see the aircraft at
Airport from April 27 to May 1.
Baykar plans to begin mass production of
the national unmanned warplane by 2024.
On April 10, the inventory acceptance
ceremony of the Turkish Navy’s flagship,
the TCG Anadolu, the world’s first UCAV
ship, was held, where Bayraktar Kızılelma
and Bayraktar TB3 UCAV were presented
on the flight deck.
The second prototype of Bayraktar
Kızılelma Unmanned Fighter Aircraft was
showcased at the event, with flight tests
planned to commence from the TCG
Anadolu in 2025.
On April 17, the TCG Anadolu ship and
Bayraktar Kızılelma and Bayraktar TB3 were
opened for public visitation at Istanbul
Sarayburnu Port. Tens of thousands of
people visited the boat and had the
opportunity to observe the aircraft on the
flight deck.
In 2021, Baykar launched the Bayraktar
Kızılema Project, fully funded by its equity
capital. On Nov. 14, 2022, Bayraktar
Kızılelma, with the tail number TC-ÖZB was
transferred to the Akıncı Flight Training and
Test Center in Çorlu. Following successful
ground testing, the aircraft made its
maiden flight on Dec. 14, 2022.
Bayraktar Kızılelma took to the skies in
a record time of just one year. Recently,
the aircraft achieved a major milestone
by conducting eight flights, including four
flights between April 18-20. During these
flights, the plane underwent successful
system identification and maneuvering
tests at high speeds with its landing gear
retracted.
Bayraktar Kızılelma reached a speed of 630
kph (390 mph) in these tests.
Air-to-air combat
The Bayraktar Kızılelma unmanned fighter
aircraft is designed to conduct air-to-air
combat missions with the assistance of
artificial intelligence and air-to-ground
missions. The aircraft’s low radar crosssection
will give Türkiye a significant
advantage in low visibility.
Additionally, the aircraft’s unique ability
to take off and land on ships with short
runways will revolutionize the battlefield,
allowing for increased flexibility and
operational capability.
Bayraktar Kızılelma, which has a take-off
weight of 8.5 tons and a payload capacity
of 1,500 kilograms (3,300 pounds), will
also have high situational awareness
with the national AESA radar. As a result,
unmanned aircraft, which will use all
nationally developed ammunition, can
May 2023 16

operate with intelligent fleet autonomy.
Baykar has begun 2023 with a significant
export contract for its Bayraktar TB2, valued
at $370 million (TL 7.19 million), after
outcompeting American, European and
Chinese competitors in a rigorous selection
process conducted by Kuwait’s Ministry of
Defense. Since the inception of the UAV
R&D process in 2003, Baykar has generated
75% of its revenue from exports. In 2021, it
became the leading exporter in the defense
and aerospace industry, according to the
Turkish Exporters Assembly (TIM) data.
In 2022, Baykar achieved an export rate of
99.3% and exported $1.18 billion (TL 22.91
billion) worth of products, establishing
itself as the top exporter in the defense
and aerospace industry with a turnover
of $1.4 billion. To date, Baykar has signed
export agreements with 28 countries for its
Bayraktar TB2 UCAV and six countries for
its Bayraktar Akıncı, further cementing its
position as a leading innovator and exporter
in the field of unmanned aerial vehicles.
May
2023
18

Türkiye launches Black Sea gas deliveries in
historic milestone
Türkiye started natural gas production
from a vast reserve discovered in the Black
Sea, which promises to curb the country’s
external dependence and cut consumer
energy prices.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan green
signaled the first delivery to an onshore
plant, which will begin with 10 million cubic
meters (mcm) of gas daily in the first phase.
“This is a historic milestone for Türkiye’s
path to energy independence,” Erdoğan
told the ceremony held in northern
Zonguldak province broadcasted live on
television.
Production will be increased to 40 million
cubic meters of gas per day in the coming
period, the president said, after other wells
go into operation.
“When we reach full capacity, we will meet
30% of our country’s gas needs” from the
Black Sea reserves, he said.
In August 2020, the country discovered
a reserve off the coast of Zonguldak,
which Erdoğan hailed as a way to wean
the country off its dependence on energy
imports.
Erdoğan announced that the country’s first
drilling vessel Fatih had discovered 320
billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas in the
Tuna-1 well in the Sakarya gas field.
May 2023 20

The discovery went down to history as
the largest gas discovery ever in Türkiye’s
history, which thereafter only went on to
be gradually revised upward.
In late December 2022, the reserve was
eventually predicted to hold around 710
bcm of gas, the increase that Erdoğan said
came mainly from the Sakarya field, where
reserves are now seen at 652 bcm, and
another 58 billion cubic meters found in an
offshore field nearby.
According to experts, 10 million cubic
meters of gas per day in the first phase
would meet around 6% of Türkiye’s annual
consumption, which stands at 60 billion
cubic meters. It will deliver a boost to
the economy and cover a significant part
of Türkiye’s energy needs, reducing its
dependence on foreign sources while
strengthening its hand on contracts with
major gas-supplying countries. President
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan poses for a photo
near the Filyos Gas Processing Facility,
Zonguldak, northwestern Türkiye, April 20,
2023. (AA Photo)
More than 8,000 personnel on land and
over 2,000 at sea have worked tirelessly in
three shifts for the past two years to bring
the gas onshore.
In June last year, Türkiye started the
construction of an underwater pipeline
connected to the seabed from the port of
Filyos – around 400 kilometers (250 miles)
east of Istanbul on the Black Sea coast.
Free natural gas
Meanwhile, Erdoğan also announced that
natural gas used in kitchens and for hot
water, equivalent to 25 cubic meters per
month on average, would be provided free
of charge for a year.
He also said all households would be
offered a month of free natural gas for
domestic consumption.
This could mean TL 30.8 billion (around
$1.59 billion) in support for citizens’
budgets.
The process of extracting natural gas will
proceed in stages. Some five of the 10 wells
planned within the scope of the first phase
will be commissioned after the ceremony,
and the remaining five wells will be
commissioned at the end of September.
The second production phase is expected
to start in 2026, and the third stage is
scheduled to begin in 2028.
As of the second phase, all household
needs in Türkiye will already be covered by
domestic gas.
Satisfied buyer
Oğuzhan Akyener, head of the Türkiye
May
21 2023

Energy Strategies and Policy Research
Center (TESPAM), expressed optimism
about the contribution of Black Sea gas to
the national economy.
Akyener noted that the initial 10 mcm of
gas per day could meet 5%-6% of Türkiye’s
annual consumption.
Akyener acknowledged that gas prices
are dynamic and do not have a fixed
mechanism.
He referred to the fluctuating prices in the
Energy Stock Exchange Istanbul (EPIAŞ),
which rose to as high as TL 25 per cubic
meter in winter and is currently around TL
9-10.
He estimated that the first production
phase would yield TL 100 million per day
based on today’s average EPİAŞ spot sales
price of TL 10 per cubic meter and daily
production of 10 mcm.
He added that the income from the second
phase could be around TL 400 million.
An aerial view shows part of the Filyos Gas
Processing Facility, Zonguldak, Türkiye,
April 19, 2023.
Maintaining that the economic value will
increase with the increase in natural gas
production, Akyener said: “Assuming that
we produce 3.5 bcm of natural gas per year
and taking the spot market prices of EPIAŞ
as an average of TL 10, the contribution of
the first phase gas to the economy will be
approximately TL 35 billion.
Referring to the possible contributions
of Black Sea gas to Türkiye in the winter
months, Akyener said: “When prices
increase in winter, it becomes difficult to
find gas. Therefore, we buy spot natural gas
at high prices from outside. But from now
on, we may not have to buy spot natural
gas from outside during winter.”
The discovery will strengthen Türkiye’s
hand on future trade deals, putting Ankara
in a much more favorable position. Akyener
said: “We will approach new natural gas
contracts with a satisfied buyer’s eye. You
renew the contracts as they expire. By
saying, ‘I already have natural gas,’ you can
cut prices on new contracts.”
Russia has always been the most significant
natural gas exporter to Türkiye – a country
highly dependent on imports via pipelines
and liquified natural gas (LNG) – followed
by Azerbaijan and Iran.
The country also met its energy needs with
LNG purchases from various countries,
including Algeria, Nigeria, Qatar, the U.S.,
Trinidad and Tobago and Norway.
In recent years, several positive steps have
been taken to diversify the country’s supply
channels and improve deals with trading
partners. With a focus on infrastructure
and LNG investments in gas storage
and transmission, Türkiye had already
succeeded in reducing its share of oil-based
pipeline gas contracts.
The country has started to reap the
benefits of those investments this year,
as it has benefited from lower LNG prices
brought about by the pandemic by storing
the cheaper purchases.
The first steps of the natural gas
exploration project were taken following
the statements of then-Energy and Natural
Resources Minister Berat Albayrak at the
National Energy and Mining Policy Meeting
held on April 6, 2017.
“For the first time in our history, I hope we
will dig at least two wells in the Black Sea
and two in the Mediterranean every year
with the exploration drilling ship we will
purchase this year,” he said.
Then on June 9, 2017, Albayrak visited the
Barbaros Hayreddin Paşa seismic vessel,
saying: “If we say Türkiye is now a great
power, we have to be with our engineers,
ships and exploration drilling platforms in
this field as well. Hopefully, we will take
important steps as a result of this.”
On July 9, 2017, at the World Oil Congress,
Albayrak said: “We have focused on oil and
natural gas activities in our seas on the axis
of exploration and production activities.
Our seismic research continues intensively
in the Mediterranean and Black Seas.”
“There is now a Turkish Petroleum (TPAO)
that will continue our drilling works at full
speed in 2018 in the Mediterranean with
our drilling ship, which we will add to our
inventory before the end of this year,” he
said at the 7th International Natural Gas
Congress on Nov. 3, 2017.
May
2023
22

Manufacturers hope for AI revolution to boost factories
Manufacturers eagerly anticipate the
advancements in artificial intelligence to be
applied in their factories, envisioning using
robots to repair and maintain intricate
machinery.
There has been an explosion of interest
in using AI across many sectors since the
launch last year of chatbot ChatGPT from
U.S. startup OpenAI.
And at Hanover Fair on industrial
technology in Germany, the potential for
artificial intelligence in the manufacturing
sector was firmly in focus.
Via the tablet in his hands, a young
employee of American IT services provider
HPE chatted with an AI-equipped virtual
assistant, asking it to operate a robot’s arm.
To solve a technical problem, “factory
workers no longer need to get a qualified
expert on site: the artificial intelligence
takes charge” of guiding the repairs, said
Thomas Meier, a data analyst from HPE
presenting the prototype.
The U.S. firm, which has some 60,000
employees, has been working for the past
year with Aleph Alpha, a German startup
with some 50 staff, seen as one of OpenAI’s
leading European rivals.
The innovation communicates with factory
workers who can, for example, send a
photo of a machine for the program to
detect any problems or check that it is
correctly installed.
Aleph Alpha’s resources are modest
compared to those available to OpenAI,
which has received major financing from
Microsoft.
But the German startup believes it has at
least one major advantage – it will keep
customer data in Europe.
’Increasing efficiency
But Aleph Alpha CEO Jonas Andrulis told
Agence France-Presse (AFP) that Europe’s
contribution to the AI revolution must go
“beyond regulation.”
At another stand at the Hanover fair,
Siemens was also exhibiting an application
to improve factory performance.
In partnership with Microsoft, the German
industrial conglomerate plans to bring out
a new version of the Teams messaging
platform this year.
It will feature ChatGPT and be specifically
designed to help workers and spot product
defaults.
Microsoft and Siemens, who say they
May 2023 24

are working with many clients in the
automotive and aerospace industries,
rejected the accusation that AI will lead to
job losses.
Anthony Hemmelgarn, CEO of Siemens
Digital Industries Software, said that 70%
of issues were not being recorded and that
AI was “not replacing anybody,” as specific
tasks were not getting done.
“It’s all about increasing efficiency,” he
added.
Another advantage that AI could bring
is “alleviating the shortage of skilled
workers,” particularly in Germany, said
Jochen Koeckler, head of the Hanover fair
organizers.
In Europe’s biggest economy, almost 58%
of manufacturers complain of workforce
shortages, according to a study by the
Federal Institute for Vocational Education
and Training published in December.
For Andrulis, AI will undoubtedly lead to
massive upheavals in the world of work.
But he also sought to offer assurances.
“It’s not like AI will take your job. But the
company using AI will take the market
share of the company that doesn’t.”
May
2023
26

Turkish EV charging firm plans to build
1,000 stations by 2023-end
Eşarj, Türkiye’s first electric vehicle charging
network, plans to build 1,000 stations by
the end of 2023, with at least one fastcharging
(DC) charging station in each of
the country’s 81 provinces, the company
said in a statement.
With 94% of its shares owned by Türkiye’s
electricity company Enerjisa Enerji, Eşarj
runs the largest fast-charging network
in the country, operating 546 charging
stations, including 383 DC and 163 AC
stations, in 57 provinces.
DC fast-charging stations can reach 80% of
their charging level in 30 minutes, while
AC charging stations can achieve the same
level of charging in about 6-7 hours.
The company said it will direct over 90%
of its new investments to DC fast-charging
stations to have at least one DC charging
station across 81 provinces by the end of
the year.
Eşarj said it builds charging stations near
shopping malls, hotels, recreational areas,
fuel stations, and restaurants with a
customer-focused approach to ensure time
efficiency, allowing its customers to rest
and enjoy their time while recharging their
EVs. ‘We are aware of how valuable the
time spent at the stations is for EV drivers.
Eşarj focuses on the efficient use of time,
and, we prioritize DC charging stations,
attach significance to locating our charging
stations in areas where our customers may
spend more time or in areas where they
may enjoy their time during charging,”
Murat Pinar, chairperson of Eşarj and CEO
of Enerjisa Enerji, was quoted as saying in
the statement.
Eşarj is also the first charging operator with
renewable energy certification, the first
with DC charging stations and the first with
contracts with EV brands.
The company’s largest active charging
area, located at Istanbul Airport, has a total
power capacity of 1 megawatt and provides
continuous power service.
May 2023 28

Chinese automaker Chery mulls future
production plans in Türkiye
Chery, a major automotive manufacturer
in China, is exploring the possibility of
establishing a factory in Türkiye as part of
its ambitious plan to enter the European
market, according to reports.
Chairperson of the Board of Chery Group
Yin Tongyu expressed the company’s
eagerness to expand in Türkiye, saying:
“We have grand ambitions for Türkiye.
Our plan is to manufacture cars locally
and export them to Europe. While our
slogan has been ‘In China for China,’ one
day we hope to proudly say ‘For Türkiye
and Europe in Türkiye,’” according to the
Turkish daily Hürriyet.
China, the world’s largest automotive
manufacturer, is breaking into European
markets with its growing focus on electric
vehicles. While Chinese manufacturers
have traditionally sold most of their
products in the domestic market, they have
recently increased their sales in Europe
and are now exploring opportunities to
establish production facilities in Europe or
nearby countries.
Among these countries, Türkiye stands out
as a key player in the automotive industry
with its vast potential in the domestic
market and its ability to export to Europe
without customs duty.
Chery has most recently entered the
Turkish market without a distributor and
this move could further boost Chery’s
presence in the region and enable it to
capitalize on Türkiye’s strategic location
between Europe and Asia.
Meanwhile, Chery Türkiye’s President Si
Fenghuo said Türkiye’s large market size
and the presence of various manufacturers
in the region makes it a valuable choice for
investment.
He emphasized the need for Chery to
have a strong market presence in the
country before implementing their larger
investment projects.
Their immediate goal is to increase their
market share in the country to 7%.
Founded by the Chinese government in
1997, Chery operates over 10 factories
throughout China, with a total production
capacity of 1.2 million units. With new
investments planned for 2024, the
company anticipates an increase in
production capacity to 2 million units.
Chery boasts a diverse portfolio of 20
different brands and recently launched
Omoda and Jaecoo as global brands during
a special event held after the Shanghai
auto show.
Fenghuo also commented on the new
Chery models that will be put on the
Turkish market next year.
The brand will offer the Sedan body type
car, the Arrizo 8, and possibly the electric
version of the Omoda 5 in 2024.
May 2023 32

‘Türkiye to
inaugurate 3
additional boron
processing
plants’
Türkiye plans to open three additional
boron processing plants, President Recep
Tayyip Erdoğan told a mass inauguration
ceremony in Eskişehir province.
“This year, we will add three new boron
processing plants to Eskişehir, which
account for an investment value of 501
million liras ($25.8 million),” Erdoğan said.
He said the “pilot facility” opened in
Eskişehir will begin processing 1,200
tons of ore per year in the first stage
establishing another “facility that will
increase the annual production to 570,000
tons immediately.”
Erdoğan said the “design, manufacture
and assembly of the locomotive and
subsystems of the first domestic electric
locomotive, E5000, will be completed
and then, testing and certification will be
launched.”
“Here, we will manufacture 500
locomotives that Türkiye will need in the
next 10 years,” he added.
Türkiye’s exports of boron and related
products hit an all-time high last year, as
the country revved up efforts to benefit
more from its vast reserves of the key
material. Türkiye has been seeking to boost
its value-added products, and has been
processing more boron and producing
semi-finished and finished products instead
of selling directly after extraction, which
was the case in previous years.
The element is actively used in many areas
including technology, energy, cleaning
materials, defense, glass and ceramics.
2023 growth expectations at 3.5 pct
The GDP growth expectations for 2023
remain unchanged at 3.5 percent,
the Central Bank’s Survey of Market
Participants have shown.
Participants’ growth forecast for next year
is 4.4 percent, also unchanged from the
previous month’s survey.
The Turkish economy grew by 5.6 percent
last year, with GDP expanding 0.9 percent
in the final quarter of 2022 from the third
quarter of the same year.
Participants of the Central Bank survey
increased slightly their end-2022 inflation
expectations from a previous 37.72 percent
to 37.77 percent. The annual consumer
price inflation in Türkiye eased from 55.18
percent in February to 50.5 percent in
March, showed the latest official data.
The 12-month ahead inflation expectations,
however, fell from 31.63 percent to 31
percent.
Participants of the survey lifted their
current account deficit estimate for 2023
from $35.98 billion to $37.75 billion.
They expect the current account deficit to
be $25.79 billion next year. They also said
they expect the U.S. dollar/Turkish Lira rate
to be 23.15 at the end of this year, up from
22.91 in the previous survey.
May 2023 34

European car sales shift higher in March
Sales of new cars jumped last month in
Europe, surpassing the level of one million
for the first time since June 2021, according
to data from the European Automobile
Manufacturers Association published.
New car registrations hit 1,087,939 in
March, an increase of 28.8 percent from
the same month last year.
Sales rose in all EU nations, but the jumps
were especially remarkable in Italy, where
sales growth hit 40.7 percent, and in Spain
where it reached 66.1 percent.
March 2022 provided a low basis for
comparison, however, as car manufacturers
were hit by a shortage of semiconductors.
The lack of chips has since eased
considerably.
Over the first three months of the year
a total of 2.7 million sales were posted,
a 17.9 percent increase from the same
period last year. Spain posted the largest
gain at 44.5 percent, followed by Italy at
26.2 percent.
Electric cars accounted for 13.9 percent of
total sales in March.
Hybrids accounted for 24.3 percent.
Plug-in hybrids saw their share drop on
an annual comparison to 7.3 percent,
primarily due to an end of subsidies for
these types of vehicles in Germany.
Petrol cars saw their share rise marginally
to 37.5 percent, while diesel fell to 14.5
percent.
Volkswagen remained in pole position
among car manufacturers, with the group
selling 275,753 vehicles across its various
brands.
May 2023 36

Western aside as Türkiye switches
to homegrown Togg as official car
Türkiye’s first domestically made car
made its way into the fleets of the Turkish
ministries, pitching itself as a candidate to
soon replace public inventories consisting
primarily of traditional Western brands.
The deliveries come just days after
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his
Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev
became the first owners of the indigenous
electric vehicle (EV) Togg.
Erdoğan accepted his Togg T10X model
in Ankara, while Aliyev had his vehicle
shipped to Baku. The leaders’ fully
electric C-segment SUVs both feature the
“Anadolu” color, inspired by red, reflecting
Anatolian lands’ sincerity and passion.
Almost all of Türkiye’s ministers announced
they had accepted the deliveries before
briefly touring around with the cars that
will now serve as public cars at their
institutions.
Justice Minister Bekir Bozdağ, Family
and Social Services Minister Derya Yanık,
Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri
Ersoy, Youth and Sports Minister Mehmet
Muharrem Kasapoğlu, National Education
Minister Mahmut Özer and Interior
Minister Süleyman Soylu all got behind the
wheel.
Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and
Industry and Technology Minister Mustafa
Varank also accepted the deliveries of their
cars.
“Riding Türkiye’s first domestic and national
car is a great honor and excitement for
us,” Bozdağ said, expressing his pride with
the fact that the car is domestic, electric,
environmentally friendly and equipped
with the latest technology.
In a statement, Bozdağ emphasized not
everyone gets the chance to dream, design
and eventually implement a project,
highlighting Erdoğan’s role in envisioning
and supporting the indigenous car project
and bringing the vehicle onto the roads.
Erdoğan has long sought to fulfill a longheld
dream of building Türkiye’s first
national automobile, part of his vision
of turning Türkiye into an economic
powerhouse.
The deliveries come after buyers of the first
batch of T10Xs were selected through a
digital draw late last month. Nearly 180,000
people submitted preorders for the car in
just 21 days. The demand prompted the
carmaker to raise the number of units and
now plans to deliver 20,000 vehicles, up
from the initially planned 12,000, this year.
“We have started using Türkiye’s car as our
official vehicle. We are on the roads with
our domestic and national T10X smart
device Togg,” said Minister Ersoy, sharing
footage of his ride on Twitter.
“We thank everyone who contributed to
realizing our 60-year-old dream, especially
our President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.”
Family and Social Services Minister Derya
Yanık sits inside Togg T10X outside her
ministry in Ankara, Türkiye, April 10, 2023.
(AA Photo)
Minister Yanık also took Togg for a spin
for the first time in traffic as her official
vehicle, touring around the vicinity of the
ministry building.
She emphasized that Togg is a product of
Türkiye’s ambition and desire to have a
domestic and national car. “It has become
a source of pride for all of us as a national
value, truly lifting our spirits,” she said.
Minister Soylu said Togg “fits our ministry
very well in the Century of Türkiye,” also
May 2023 38

hinting at the fact that 2023 coincides with
the 100th anniversary of the republic.
“Our country’s revolution, our domestic
and national car Togg, is now in our
ministry’s inventory. Thanks to our
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who has
turned another dream into reality, and to
everyone who contributed,” Soylu noted.
“We will continue to work toward bringing
many more grand projects like Togg to
our country under the leadership of our
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, for the
sake of our children and the future of our
country,” said Minister Özer.
For his part, Kasapoğlu shared a video of
him touring around the capital Ankara and
chatting with excited citizens who sought to
examine Togg.
Having had its mass production launched
in late October, Togg said the T10X will be
initially sold with one engine type and two
battery options. The model will feature
battery packs with capacities of 52.4 and
88.5 kilowatt-hours, boasting ranges of 314
and 523 kilometers (195 and 325 miles),
respectively. The first version of the T10X
can accelerate from zero to 100 kph (62.14
mph) in 7.6 seconds; while the second, for
which delivery will start on Oct. 29, can
accomplish zero-100 kph in 4.8 seconds.
Togg’s first model will have a price ranging
from TL 953,000 ($49,500) to around TL
1.22 million.
The Automobile Initiative Group of Türkiye,
or Togg, a consortium of five Turkish
companies, manufactures the vehicle in
cooperation with the Union of Chambers
and Commodity Exchanges of Türkiye
(TOBB). The batteries of the Togg T10X can
be recharged to up to 80% from 20% in less
than 28 minutes at fast-charging stations.
Besides the SUV, Togg will manufacture
another four models – a sedan,
C-hatchback, B-SUV and B-MPV – by 2030.
The sedan will follow the mass production
of the SUV. The current production capacity
stands at around 100,000 vehicles per year,
which is expected to reach 175,000 once
Togg’s factory in Gemlik district, in the
northwestern province of Bursa, reches
total capacity. The brand aims to produce
1 million vehicles across the five segments
by 2030.
May
39 2023

Türkiye ditches tax on new commercial vehicles
Turkish businesspeople will be exempted
from special consumption tax (ÖTV)
while replacing their commercial
vehicles, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
announced.
“Our tradespeople who are engaged
in transport services via taxi, minibus,
midibus, bus and commercial cargo
by truck will not have to pay special
consumption tax when purchasing the
same type of vehicles,” Erdoğan told
a crowd in the town of Gemlik in the
northwestern province of Bursa.
Erdoğan’s remarks come as Türkiye
is heading to the presidential and
parliamentary elections set for May
14, seen as the most crucial vote in the
centurylong history of the republic.
Among others, the president also said
those who sell products they manufacture
at home online would be included in the
scope of the tax exemption. He added that
they would raise the exemption limit from
TL 320,000 (nearly $16,500) to TL 700,000.
Erdoğan recalled arrangements made in
recent years, saying they had excluded
business incomes from income tax.
“We have made an unprecedented
arrangement by not levying income taxes
on our tradespeople, such as barbers,
tailors, grocers, greengrocers and taxi
drivers,” he noted.
“Currently, 830,000 such individuals benefit
from both income tax and value-added tax
(VAT) exemption.”
Gemlik is home to a major port and a
factory of Türkiye’s first domestically
produced automobile, Togg.
Erdoğan was later due to attend an
inauguration ceremony for a plant that will
manufacture batteries that will power the
fully electric vehicle.
The vehicle is being manufactured by a
consortium of five Turkish companies called
the Automobile Initiative Group of Türkiye,
or Togg, in cooperation with the Union of
Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of
Türkiye (TOBB).
The consortium inked a deal with Farasis,
one of the world’s most prominent
companies, to build a lithium-ion battery
factory near Togg’s production site in
Bursa. Erdoğan has long sought to fulfill
a long-held dream of building Türkiye’s
first national automobile, part of his
vision of turning Türkiye into an economic
powerhouse.
Togg launched mass production of its
T10X, a C-segment SUV, last October
and started deliveries. The T10X will be
initially sold with one engine type and two
battery options. The model will feature
battery packs with capacities of 52.4 and
88.5 kilowatt-hours, boasting ranges of
314 and 523 kilometers (195 and 325
miles), respectively. The batteries of the
Togg T10X can be recharged to up to
80% from 20% in less than 28 minutes
at fast-charging stations. Besides the
SUV, Togg will manufacture another four
models – a sedan, C-hatchback, B-SUV
and B-MPV – by 2030. The sedan will
follow the mass production of the SUV.
The current production capacity stands at
around 100,000 vehicles per year, which
is expected to reach 175,000 once Togg’s
factory reaches full capacity. The brand
aims to produce 1 million vehicles across
the five segments by 2030. Electric cars’
share of new sales more than doubled in
Türkiye
May 2023 40

Türkiye working to diversify renewable
energy resources
The Agriculture and Forestry Ministry is
working on projects aimed at utilizing
geothermal energy resources, particularly
in urban agriculture, while officials are
looking into ways to boost biomass
production in rural areas.
The ministry favors the specialized
greenhouse-organized industrial zones
based on geothermal heating (TDİOSB) as
the more appropriate model.
This model facilitates the best use of
geothermal energy and helps to undertake
market-focused planned production.
Infrastructure work for such 16 TDİOSB
has been completed for plant production.
Some eight of the geothermal heating
greenhouses are located in the districts
of the Ağrı, Aydın, Denizli, İzmir, Kütahya,
Nevşehir, Aksaray and Kayseri provinces.
Officials have also chosen the locations to
build those facilities in the provinces of
Çanakkale and Balıkesir.
Meanwhile, the ministry is working
on a project to develop a specialized
aquaculture-organized industrial zone
in the Karataş district of the southern
province of Adana. It will be the first and
only aquaculture-organized industrial zone
in Europe.
The production at the Adana facility will
be around 60,000 tons annually and
contribute some $250 million to the
country’s exports, according to officials
from the ministry.
Meanwhile, the Agriculture Ministry is
teaming up with the Energy Ministry to
offer alternative energy resources to rural
areas that currently do not have access to
natural gas.
As part of those efforts, the mass
production of biogas units that generate
energy from cattle waste will be launched
soon. The gas produced by that equipment
will be offered for use in kitchens in rural
areas.Türkiye has a large biogas production
potential, Ali Rıza Öner, a renewable energy
expert, told the daily Milliyet.
“The electricity installed capacity based on
biomass resources reached 2,172 MW as of
end-June, which corresponded to 2.14 of
all installed capacity,” he said, noting that
those resources provide power to some 4.5
million homes. The provinces of Konya and
Erzurum account for 5.1 percent and 4.75
percent of total biogas energy production,
respectively, Öner noted.
Istanbul ranks first in terms of biogas
facilities capacity, followed by the provinces
of Balıkesir, Ankara, Samsun and Antalya,
Öner added.
The Türkiye Electromechanics Industries
(TEMSAN), operating under the roof of the
Energy Ministry, has developed Biotem,
which produces biogas from organic
wastes. One Biotem unit can generate
energy from three cattle in a month, which
is equivalent to 12 propane cylinders used
in kitchens. The prototypes of Biotem are
currently being used in 10 provinces.
May 2023 42

Demand for electric
cars ‘booming’: IEA
Sales of electric vehicles are booming and
are expected to account for nearly one
in five cars sold this year, according to a
report released.
The International Energy Agency (IEA)
said the rapid electrification of road
transportation will have big implications for
the energy industry as it will eliminate the
need for five million barrels of oil per day
by the end of the decade.
World oil consumption averages just over
100 million barrels per day.
“Electric vehicles are one of the driving
forces in the new global energy economy
that is rapidly emerging - and they are
bringing about a historic transformation of
the car manufacturing industry worldwide,”
IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol said in a
statement.
In its annual report on electric vehicles, the
IEA said it expects annual sales to rise 35
percent this year to reach 14 million.
It projected that to be a market share of 18
percent, up from four percent in 2020.
The IEA said the overwhelming majority of
electric car sales are concentrated in three
markets: China, Europe and the United
States.
China is in pole position, accounting for 60
percent of global electric vehicle sales last
year, the IEA said.
It said measures such as the Inflation
Reduction Act in the United States, which
offers generous subsidies to consumers to
switch to electric vehicles, would further
boost sales in the coming years.
The IEA forecasts that the average share of
electric cars in total sales across China, the
EU and the United States is set to rise to
around 60 percent by 2030.
Honda’s EV plans
Meanwhile, Honda is gearing up for an
electrification shift in North America
with two models developed with General
Motors going on sale next year and a
bigger EV with a new platform in 2025, a
year earlier than initially announced.
President Toshihiro Mibe yesterday
announced a sprawling set of initiatives
intended to put Honda on the global EV
map.
Honda has set a goal to have all its models
around the world electric or fuel cell, which
runs on hydrogen and is emissions-free, by
2040.
It aims to make more than 2 million EVs a
year by 2030.
Mibe told reporters Tokyo-based Honda
will forge ahead on investments and
partnerships to realize such goals.
May 2023 44

Acceleration of Deep
Learning algorithms
Thinking fast and getting it right. Software
company Zenseact and CERN wrap up joint
research project around the acceleration of
Deep Learning algorithms.
How quickly can a computer make sense
of what it sees without losing accuracy?
And to what extent can you perform
car-related AI tasks on hardware with
limited computing resources? Aiming to
answer these questions, the Zenseact-
CERN collaboration shows great promise
for technological advancements in
autonomous driving, ultimately helping to
improve cars’ ability to avoid accidents.
Zenseact and CERN (The European
Organization for Nuclear Research)
announce the end of a three-year research
project around Deep Learning methods
and processes. Focusing on computer
vision, an AI discipline dealing with how
computers interpret the visual world
and then automate actions based on
that understanding, the purpose of the
collaboration was to make Deep Learning
faster and more accurate, enabling
autonomous cars to make accurate
decisions faster.
In the interest of the research carried out
at car safety software developer Zenseact,
the project focused on real-life problems
related to autonomous vehicle technology.
“Deep Learning has strongly reshaped
computer vision in the last decade, and the
accuracy of image recognition applications
is now at unprecedented levels. But the
results of our research show that there’s
still room for improvement when it comes
to running the Deep Learning algorithms
faster and more energy-efficient on
resource-limited on-device hardware.
Simply put, machine learning techniques
might help drive faster decision-making in
autonomous cars,” Christoffer Petersson,
research lead at Zenseact, says.
Advances in Deep Learning for computer
vision have had a crucial impact on the
development of autonomous vehicles,
enabling the perception of the car’s
environment at ever-increasing levels of
accuracy and detail. Deep Neural Networks
are used for finding patterns and extracting
relevant information from camera images,
such as the precise location of the
surrounding vehicles and pedestrians.
For an autonomous vehicle to drive
safely and efficiently, it must be able to
react fast and make quick decisions. This
imposes strict runtime requirements on
the neural networks employed to run on
the embedded hardware in the vehicle.
By compressing the neural networks, e.g.,
by using fewer parameters and bits, the
algorithms can be executed faster and use
less energy.
For this process, Field Programmable Gate
Arrays (FPGA) – configurable integrated
circuits used in various science and
technology domains – were chosen as the
hardware benchmark. Given the limited
computing resources available to FPGAs,
it is essential to reduce, to a minimum,
the required computing resources while
preserving accuracy. Since FPGA hardware
requires effective compression, they
provide a challenging problem.
The main result of the FPGA experiment
was a practical demonstration that
computer vision tasks for automotive could
be performed with high accuracy and short
latency, even on a processing unit with
limited computational resources.
“The project clearly opens up for future
directions of research. The developed
workflows could be applied to many
industries, for example, automotive.”
Christoffer explains.
Many of the challenges faced by future
scientific experiments and the automotive
industry’s technological challenges require
processing large amounts of data in
real-time, often through edge computing
devices with strict latency and power
consumption constraints.
The joint team of Zenseact and CERN
researchers carried out this project within
an open-source software environment.
The collaboration reveals that the largest
physics experiment in the world could
clearly help autonomous driving. Results
show great promise for future speed and
accuracy increases in image recognition for
autonomous vehicles, ultimately helping
to improve cars’ ability to avoid accidents.
For CERN, it has also been a fruitful
collaboration.
“The research is of great importance for
CERN. With AI growing in relevance for
LHC (large hadron collider) physics, future
development of this research area could
be a major contribution to our progress.,”
Maurizio Pierini, Physicist at CERN, says.
May 2023 46

Türkiye launches
construction of
1st battery plant
Türkiye has laid the foundation for a facility
that will manufacture batteries, which will
power its first domestically manufactured
automobile, and develop other energy
storage solutions.
“We started our journey by aiming to make
Türkiye a production hub of Europe in
charging and battery technologies along
with electric vehicles,” President Recep
Tayyip Erdoğan told a ceremony in Gemlik
town in the northwestern province of
Bursa.
Gemlik is home to a major port and a
factory of Türkiye’s first domestically
produced car Togg.
The plant of Siro, a joint venture of Togg
and Chinese electric vehicle battery maker
Farasis, will launch production in 2024,
Erdoğan said.
Togg and Farasis signed a deal in October
2020 to build a lithium-ion battery factory.
Founded a year later, Siro will offer battery
solutions for the automotive industry
and storage solutions for renewable
energy, power grids, charging stations and
residential buildings.
The company is poised to become a majorleague
player with an annual production
capacity of 20 gigawatt-hours (GWh),
including battery cells. It will initially
develop and produce battery modules and
packs. The annual production capacity
at the Siro Battery Development and
Production Campus, to be set up on a
607,000 square meter area next to Togg’s
production site in Bursa, is planned to be
increased to 50 GWh by 2035.
Erdoğan said the investment would ensure
that Türkiye becomes a strong player in
battery technologies.
“This campus will become an integrated
center producing battery modules and
packages with high nickel, including battery
cells, by 2026,” he noted.
Siro says it will export its energy storage
solutions to 120 countries worldwide.
Erdoğan has long sought to fulfill a longheld
dream of building Türkiye’s first
national automobile, part of his vision
of turning Türkiye into an economic
powerhouse.
Togg launched mass production of its
T10X, a C-segment SUV, last October and
started deliveries. The T10X will be initially
sold with one engine type and two battery
options. The model will feature battery
packs with capacities of 52.4 and 88.5
kilowatt-hours, boasting ranges of 314
and 523 kilometers (195 and 325 miles),
respectively. The batteries of the Togg T10X
can be recharged to up to 80% from 20%
in less than 28 minutes at fast-charging
stations. The vehicle is being manufactured
by a consortium of five Turkish companies
called the Automobile Initiative Group
of Türkiye, or Togg, in cooperation with
the Union of Chambers and Commodity
Exchanges of Türkiye (TOBB).
“With the introduction of our domestic
and national car, our country now has an
automobile and a brand that can compete
with the best in the world,” Erdoğan said.
Addressing a crowd before the ceremony,
the president said Togg was “not just a car
brand.”
“At the same time, it is a technology
initiative with its design and software,” he
noted. “The battery initiative is also the
most important move of this breakthrough.
These batteries are products that can be
used not only in Togg, but also in many
other areas.”
Besides the SUV, Togg will manufacture
four other models – a sedan, C-hatchback,
B-SUV and B-MPV – by 2030. The sedan will
follow the mass production of the SUV.
The current production capacity stands at
around 100,000 vehicles per year, which
is expected to reach 175,000 once Togg’s
factory reaches full capacity.
Erdoğan said some 28,000 units would be
produced this year, adding that the brand
aims to produce 1 million vehicles across
the five segments by 2030.
The president said Togg would begin to
be exported as of 2025 while the initial
production will be tailored for the domestic
market.
May 2023 48

Türkiye aims for record-breaking
tourism revenue in 2023
Türkiye aims to achieve all-time high tourism revenues this year,
according to tourism representatives, including Kaan Kaşif Kavaloğlu,
the head of the Mediterranean Touristic Hoteliers and Operators
Association (AKTOB).
Kavaloğlu expressed the country’s ambition to achieve a target of $60
billion (TL 1.16 trillion) in tourism revenues, saying: “We expect this
year to surpass all previous years in tourism revenues.”
He was speaking to Anadolu Agency (AA) about the World Tourism
Fair held in Berlin, which provided them with preliminary data for
2023, estimated to be 30% higher than last year.
Kavaloğlu highlighted the impressive turnout at Türkiye’s booth and
noted that the fair was exclusively for tourism professionals. He
added: “Türkiye and Antalya have a significant appeal for all tour
operators, especially those from England, Germany, and the Benelux
and Western European countries. Our highest recorded data was in
2019, and I anticipate that the number of tourists visiting this year
will not be less than 15 million.”
Kavaloğlu emphasized that they do not anticipate a reduction in the
number of tourists arriving from Western Europe and Russia, citing
the global recognition of the high-quality service they provided
throughout the pandemic. In addition, Kavaloğlu highlighted their
commitment to providing safe and healthy tourism services, stating:
“Türkiye and particularly Antalya are indispensable for global tourism.
We have a significant advantage in terms of cost-benefit analysis for
consumers, and nearly 99% of our tourists return home satisfied.”
May 2023 50

European market
Kavaloğlu highlighted the recent surge in input costs of
tourism, emphasizing the need to focus on increasing
revenues instead of just the number of tourists.
“Currently, our average overnight sales prices are almost at the
same level as Spain, around $95. Italy and France are ahead
of us at $115. Greece is $90, just $5 behind us. We are lagging
behind. If we can increase our average overnight sales prices
to above $100 in the long run, it will have a significant impact
on our package sales. It is crucial to increase both the number
of tourists and our revenues, and we need to focus on both
simultaneously,” Kavaloğlu explained.
The tourism official also mentioned that their hotels receive
significant numbers of tourists from Western Europe, including
the U.K., Germany, France, Belgium and the Netherlands.
Additionally, there is a tourist profile from the Middle East
who prefers to spend the holy Islamic month of Ramadan in
Türkiye.
In anticipation of an active season, Kavaloğlu expressed his
expectation that Russia would be the top market, followed by
Germany and the U.K. He added that the European market
seems to be performing better than last year and that all tour
operators currently selling to Türkiye are on the plus side.
Meanwhile, according to Hacı Osman Üçdan, the owner of a
chain of hotels and a tourism operator, most of their hotels
are already fully booked, and they expect to have a full
season in 2023. Üçdan emphasized that their facilities have
been renovated to offer professional tourism services. “We
are confident that we will exceed our target of $60 billion in
tourism revenues. Our reservations are very good, with 65% of
early reservations already sold. We are fully booked from June
to October,” he said.
51

Capacity usage rises in April
The capacity utilization rate (CUR) in the
manufacturing sector improved from 73.5
percent in March to 75.4 percent in April,
data from the Central Bank have shown.
In the durable consumer goods industry,
the usage rate inched up from 71.7 percent
to 71.9, while the CUR in the non-durable
goods sector climbed from 71.7 percent
to 73.4 percent. Companies operating in
the consumer goods sector worked at 73.2
percent capacity this month, up from the
previous month’s CUR of 71.7 percent.
In the food industry, the capacity utilization
rate increased from 72.1 percent to 73.6
percent, while in the intermediate goods
sector, CUR improved from 72.7 percent to
74.4 percent. The CUR in the capital goods
sector was 79.1 percent in April, comparing
favorably with the 78.6 percent of capacity
utilization in the previous month.
The Central Bank separately said that its
Investment Tendency Survey for spring
showed that gross investment expenditure
in the manufacturing sector increased
compared with the same period of last
year.
Last year, the largest annual increase
in investment expenditure was in the
machinery and equipment manufacturing
sector, with 41.6 percent, while
investments in land, building and
infrastructure grew by 30.2 percent and
20.4 percent, respectively.
The Spring Survey also showed that
expected investment expenditures in 2023
will increase compared with 2022, with
the machinery and equipment companies
planning to boost investment expenditure
by 35.9 percent.
Land investment expenditures are expected
to increase by 24.5 percent this year.
Investments in building and infrastructure
will rise 16.2 percent, according to the
survey.
May 2023 54

Turkish venture processes 22B frames daily
to boost workplace safety
An event in Türkiye gathering purchasing
and supply chain leaders sought to shed
light on digital transformation in the
industry, as well as highlight health and
safety at the workplace.
Organized in cooperation between the
Turkish Employers’ Association of Metal
Industries (MESS) and purchasing and
supply chain management company
Zer, the ORDER Summit was held at the
technology center MEXT.
The metal employers’ association is said to
be providing a one-stop, advantageous, fast
and uninterrupted service by combining
the purchase volumes of its members with
the ORDER platform.
Having already made a name for itself
through its efforts and works focused on
digital transformation in the industry, MESS
is said to be the first association to have set
up a platform like ORDER.
The event at MEXT, dubbed the world’s
largest digital transformation and
competence development center, gathered
an ecosystem network consisting of the
most successful technology and solution
providers and business partners.
The summit was marked by intenseye,
an artificial intelligence-powered
environmental health, and the safety (EHS)
platform.
The venture, which says is engaged in
helping the world’s largest enterprises to
scale employee health and safety across
their facilities, shared the outlook of the
Journey to Zero Accident project it started
in cooperation with MEXT.
Work accident every 7 seconds
Addressing the summit, Melih Rifaioğlu,
customer relations manager at intenseye
in charge of Europe and the Middle East,
suggested there is a work-related accident
in the world every seven seconds.
Citing data from the International Labour
Organization (ILO), Rifaioğlu said there are
around 340 million occupational accidents
annually, and that these cause over 6,000
deaths on average each day.
“In order to prevent these accidents
before they happen, we are carrying out
our studies with the goal of reaching zero
accidents,” he noted.
“Our artificial intelligence and EHS
specialists working in our New York head
office and in our Istanbul office in Türkiye
help more than 500,000 employees
working in global and local businesses in 25
countries to work in a safer environment,”
Rifaioğlu said.
“We process 22 billion photo frames per
day, and we offer our services not only as
a technology provider but also as a reliable
consultant with our EHS experts in our
team.”
Rifaioğlu suggested that an average of
8,700 hours of visual data are collected
annually from a single camera. But he said
the process of monitoring and generating
meaning from this data is carried out in
most enterprises without taking advantage
of the benefits provided by the technology.
“As intenseye, we connect to cameras in
businesses, analyze unsafe situations and
provide digital and visual notifications
May 2023 56

instantly. We offer our customers the
opportunity to conduct 24/7 automatic EHS
audits with an accuracy rate of over 90%
in a period of one month from the day we
start the project,” he noted.
“So far, we have achieved an average
accuracy rate of 92% in all projects.”
Intenseye’s Rifaioğlu said the EHS
Technologies Dissemination project carried
out with the leadership of MESS and
TISK Microsurgery Foundation, has been
implemented at more than 100 facilities.
“With a number of facilities over 100,
we have started using the system by
commissioning approximately 70% of
the facilities belonging to the companies
applying for participation in the project.
In fact, there are also institutions among
them that have benefited from the platform
and started sharing success stories within a
period of about two months,” he noted.
May
2023
58

Consumer confidence
rises 9 percent
The consumer confidence index has
advanced by 9.2 percent on a monthly
basis, rising from 80.1 in March to 87.5 in
April, the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK)
has reported
Any index figure above the 100-mark
indicates optimism among consumers.
The headline consumer sentiment index
was down 2.9 percent month-on-month
in March. The consumer confidence index
was 67.3 April last year and 80.2 in the
same month two years ago.
The sub-index, which measures
households’ assessment of their current
financial situation, which inched up 0.8
on a monthly basis in March, advanced
by 4.6 percent. The data TÜİK released on
April 19, also showed that households’
expectations regarding their financial
situation over the next 12 months
improved 12.8 percent in April after
plunging 5.5 percent in the previous
month. According to TÜİK’s regular survey,
consumers appeared to be more optimistic
about the general economic outlook in the
next 12 months.The sub-index measuring
households’ expectations regarding the
overall economic outlook ahead soared
14.7 percent month-on-month, which
compared favorably with the 3.3 percent
decline in the index in March.
More consumers think in April that the
current general economic condition
improved compared to the past 12 months.
The related sub-index increased by 7.5
percent after declining 0.5 percent last
month.
TÜİK said that that the Consumer Tendency
Survey was carried out in all 81 province
May 2023 60

GM recalls 40,000 pickups to fix fire risk
General Motors is recalling certain
Chevrolet Silverado medium-duty trucks
for model year 2019 or later, following the
discovery of a potential leak in brake fluid
that could result in a fire.
Potentially 40,428 vehicles could be
affected.
They include 4500HD, 5500HD, and
6500HD models with model years between
2019 and 2023, according to documents
posted by U.S. safety regulators.
The vehicles may have a brake pressure
sensor assembly that allows brake fluid
to leak and cause a short circuit. That
in turn increases the risk of a fire that
could occur when the vehicle is either
driving or parked. GM advises owners
with potentially affected models to park
outdoors and away from structures until
the recall repair is done. Vehicles with
model years before 2019 used a different
design. GM said it’s not aware of any
injuries related to the condition.
The U.S. auto giant delivered 603,208
vehicles in the first quarter, up 17.6 percent
from the year-ago period.
GM vice president Steve Carlisle described
the period as a “great start” to 2023 saying
the company has a “busy season” of
product launches coming up.
GM had especially meager vehicle
availability for much of 2021 and 2022,
reflecting a hit to supplies following factory
suspensions during Covid-19. This was
followed by a hit to output from a dearth of
semiconductor chips.
May 2023 64

IFC to make Istanbul regional financial hub:
Minister Kurum
Arecently opened vast business district
pledging to make Istanbul a financial hub
concerns not only Türkiye but also the
nearby region, a senior official said.
The $3.4 billion Istanbul Finance Center
(IFC) was inaugurated on Monday in
a gradual launch that started with the
opening of the section hosting banks.
It aims to make Istanbul a competitive
destination for international financial
institutions and investors and to support
the growth of the Turkish economy.
“The fact that Istanbul is a financial
center is an issue that concerns not only
our country but also our immediate
geography,” Murat Kurum, minister of
environment, urbanization and climate
change, told a meeting at the IFC with
media representatives.
“On this occasion, the fact that it is close to
the Middle East and in a position to serve
Europe will increase its value in this sense,”
Kurum stressed.
He said the employment areas in the
center were important for the financial
sector and the infrastructure of finance.
“We have implemented a very important
project for our Istanbul with schools,
social facilities and areas that will serve
our citizens and employees as part of the
center,” he noted.
The IFC project started in 2009 in the
Ümraniye district on Istanbul’s Anatolian
side. The center will be a new home to
most of Türkiye’s most prominent financial
institutions and authorities.
These include the Central Bank of the
Republic of Türkiye (CBRT), the Borsa
Istanbul Stock Exchange (BIST), the Banking
Regulation and Banking Regulation and
Supervision Agency (BDDK), and the Capital
Markets Board of Türkiye (SPK).
The ceremony on Monday marked the
start of a new chapter for the country’s
public lenders, Ziraat Bank, Halkbank and
VakıfBank, all of which have relocated to
the center.
Run by the Türkiye Wealth Fund and
developed in coordination with the
Environment, Urban Planning and
Climate Change Ministry, the IFC will host
prominent domestic and international
banks, participation finance companies,
financial investment and portfolio
management companies, and insurance
firms.
“God willing, the value of our Istanbul in
terms of finance will increase with the
project ... The current investment cost of
this project is TL 65 billion,” said Kurum.
Kurum said the IFC would relieve traffic
congestion because it has a parking lot with
26,500 vehicles.
The center boasts 1.3 million square
meters of office space, a 100,000-squaremeter
shopping center, a conference and
performance center for 2,100 people, and
a five-star hotel spanning 30,000 square
meters.
Rebuilding drive in quake zone
Elaborating on ongoing efforts after
catastrophic earthquakes struck the
southeastern region more than two
months ago, Kurum said the rebuilding
drive is underway.
The Feb. 6 quakes killed over 50,000
people, razed hundreds of thousands of
buildings and ripped the southeastern
region’s infrastructure.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has
pledged to swiftly rebuild the 11 provinces
devastated by what is described as the
worst disaster in Türkiye’s modern history
and promised to deliver homes within
a year. Kurum said they are eager to
complete and deliver 319,000 houses in
one year, which will gradually increase to
650,000. Foundations for some 100,000
units have been laid in the first 75 days
after the disaster, Kurum noted.
“The 650,000 houses will be delivered
stage by stage as in the previous
earthquakes, and 11 of our provinces will
stand up simultaneously. We called it the
‘Rising Anatolia’ project. Anatolia is really
rising,” he added.
May 2023 66

Interest at fairs indicates strong tourism season for Türkiye
Two of the world’s most important tourism
trade shows have taken place back to
back, with ITB Berlin in March and EMITT
Istanbul bringing together international
tourism stakeholders.
The fairs, which take the pulse of tourism
around the world, also present general
predictions for 2023, and the industry
agrees that 2023 could be a record year for
the post-pandemic travel industry.
The feedback from Turkish tourism
professionals from both fairs also shows
that there will be an increase in tourist
movement from different regions for the
country. Especially in the summer season,
with the rise of Eastern and Northern
Europe, the country is already looking
forward to an active summer season.
In 2022, Türkiye took its record to a new
level and achieved tourism revenues of
$46.3 billion. In 2023, the country, which
has set record targets for the number of
foreign tourists and tourism revenues, aims
to reach 60 million tourists and generate
$56 billion in tourism revenues.
Firuz Bağlıkaya, president of the Turkish
Travel Agencies Association (TÜRSAB),
emphasized that the bilateral meetings
they held at ITB Berlin, the meetings
between delegations and the feedback
they received from foreign travel agencies
were very positive for Türkiye and said they
kept their finger on the pulse of the sector
at EMITT Istanbul.
“The contacts and meetings we had during
EMITT showed that both the demand for
our country from abroad is positive and
the development of domestic tourism
continues while strengthening our
expectation to reach the levels we have
targeted in terms of tourism in 2023,” she
said. Mete Vardar, chairman of the board
of directors of Jolly Tour, said that 2022 was
a very successful year for Turkish tourism
and that the feedback they received from
both ITB Berlin and EMITT predicted high
demand for 2023.
“We saw the interest very clearly at
the ITB fair,” he said. “The demand for
Türkiye, especially from Europe, continues
to be very huge. The U.K. market is also
intense. The sales of the Russian market
have surpassed last year to date, and the
demand is still very strong.”
Kaan Kavaloğlu, president of the
Mediterranean Tourist Hoteliers and
Operators Association (AKTOB), said
the results of the fairs support Türkiye’s
tourism goals.
“Specifically for Antalya, we expect to
exceed 15 million tourists, with the
British and German markets sending an
increased number of tourists compared
to last year,” he added.
“With the decrease in the effects of the
Russia-Ukraine tension, there is also an
increase in arrivals from Russia. The data
for the whole year will be similar to 2019.
We are approaching the target of $56
billion in tourism revenues and 60 million
tourists, announced by the Culture and
Tourism Ministry for 2023. We may
experience a new record year.”
May 2023 68