Turkish polyester giant Sasa aims to provide added value in the petrochemical sector with facilities it plans to build, investing $25 billion in an area designated as a "private industrial zone" in the Yumurtalık district of Adana, in the country's south, according to a report on Tuesday.
With the decision signed by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and published in the Official Gazette on Aug. 16, an area of 5.5 million square meters in Yumurtalık was declared as the "SASA Polyester Industry Inc. Yumurtalık Private Industrial Zone."
In the first phase of the projects, to be implemented in three stages in the region, a 1.2 million-ton polypropylene production facility (a durable plastic raw material used in packaging, textiles and automotive), a refinery with an annual capacity of 13 million tons and an integrated port will be established.
Construction work in the area, where Sasa plans to invest $25 billion in projects, is scheduled to begin in the first or second quarter of 2026.
Mehmet Şeker, a board member of SASA Polyester Industry Inc., evaluating the planned investment, said that aromatic chemical products, which Türkiye currently imports, will be produced in these facilities.
Emphasizing the importance of raw material production, which came to the fore again during the COVID-19 period, he said their main goal "is to produce raw materials and high-value-added products."
"We aim to increase our exports while reducing imports and dependency on foreign sources. We embarked on this journey with that purpose. Hopefully, we will succeed," he told Anadolu Agency (AA).
Şeker also stated that they were trying to contribute to the national economy with new investments.
"Türkiye imports over $20 billion in aromatic chemicals and also has an annual demand for approximately 2.5 million tons of polypropylene. Here, gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and paraxylene, which is the raw material for polyester, will be produced," he said.
"We will avert chemical imports by producing these products from naphtha and condensate oil. At Sasa, our purified terephthalic acid (PTA) production has started with a daily capacity of 4,800 tons and approximately 1.75 million tons annually. We used to import this, but now we don't," he explained.
"After the investment in Yumurtalık, we will no longer import paraxylene, which is the raw material for PTA," he added.
Expressing that they export to countries in the U.S., Europe, Africa and the Far East, Şeker noted that with these new products, they will have reduced the country's imports to some extent.
"By producing the products needed by the domestic market, we will export the remaining portion to various countries worldwide. When the facility becomes operational in four years, it will prevent imports worth between $6 and $7 billion."
He also said some companies in Türkiye would be able to create new products using the raw materials they produce. "This place, Yumurtalık, will become a massive chemical industrial zone in 10 to 15 years, making a significant contribution to both Adana and the Mediterranean region," he furthered.
While pointing out that they currently employ approximately 5,000 people, he added: "With the new project, we plan to employ 8,000 to 10,000 people in the construction of the facilities and finally employ 2,500 to 3,000 people."
Şeker also mentioned that negotiations with relevant government institutions and international companies for the realization of the projects are ongoing.
Remarks by Şeker came a day after the company also announced plans to establish a new company for refinery and petrochemical investment. Sasa said on Monday that it had decided to establish "SASA RAFINERI," with a capital of TL 100 million ($2.44 million), to carry out its planned refinery and petrochemical facility investment in Yumurtalık.
The new company will also manage logistics, infrastructure and ancillary production facilities, including the area designated as a private industrial zone.
Analysts view the mega investment as positive for the company, which has seen its shares soar after the announcement.
