As it was announced in early September that Turkey's Azure Group and one of the largest Qatari families have agreed to jointly establish a new company and investment fund, Azure Group Chairman Erkan Gül said on Friday that the company's partners in Qatar want to invest in Turkey, specifying that they will allocate approximately $1 billion of their budget for Turkey's real estate sector. The chairman also indicated they are trying to establish a new airline company that is related to private jets in Turkey.Gül stated that a new Doha-based company and investment fund were established under the name of AzureMana to invest in Turkey, specifically in the industrial sector.
Fifty-one percent of the company that was established belongs to the Qatari family and 49 percent belongs to Azure Group, Gül said, announcing that the Qatari state has tendered a contract for 250 factories to be established in Qatar and that around 9,000 applications were made. He also added that they want Turkish businessmen to invest in Qatar.
Noting that the Qatari government funded a large part of the project, Gül said there would be no huge expenses for Turkish investors and that they would bring good and successful people there.
A large delegation from Qatar is in Istanbul for a real estate fair, Gül said, explaining that the delegation is looking for a good real estate company that they could do common business with in Turkey, and that they could acquire a real estate company as well as establish a partnership for this.
He also announced that they are already in contact with Premier Real Estate and Rozz Real Estate, saying that they will enter a serious investment relationship with one of them.
He said it would be easier to carry out operations through an existing company instead of establishing a new one and that it would be more convenient for them to work with someone who is experienced instead of entering a market as a new player.
Emphasizing that real estate in Turkey is growing very fast, Gül elaborated on their possible future investments.
"We expect the sector to continue in this way for another six to seven years. That is why we want to invest a certain amount of our budget in Turkey. Our government wants to revive the real estate sector and maintain its continuity. Our shareholders in Qatar also want to invest in Turkey. We will allocate $1 billion from our budget for real estate investments in Turkey. We will commence the project in Turkey at the beginning of 2018. We will evaluate our remaining money in the industry," Gül said.
TURKEY FIRST CHOICE FOR GOODS AND INVESTMENTSGül said that their shareholders from Qatar want and do invest in Turkey.
The Qatari government said Turkey is the first country to be invested in and from where foods are bought, Gül said, adding that due to this, families invested in Turkey with incentives from Qatari government.
Qatari investors see a bright future in Turkey, Gül said, indicating that in terms of its geographical position, Turkey was very strong and is still growing compared to surrounding countries.
Gül indicated that the company grows around 30 percent annually, adding that they have offices and warehouses in three or four provinces in Turkey.
Emphasizing that are leaning toward the oil sector, he said: "We are in contact with a few oil companies regarding the purchase. This investment will surpass $5 billion."
NEW AIRLINE COMPANY TO BE ESTABLISHEDGül said that they are thinking of buying companies in different sectors in Turkey, but that it is too early for that as yet.
He also said that projects include using all of the $5 billion in investments in Turkey in three years.
Indicating that the fund will grow even further with the participation of other Qatari families, Gül said they are trying to establish a new airline company in Turkey that is related to private jets.
"Some 20 to 25 people will fly daily on Istanbul-Ankara flights. We are working on a special project. We talked with six airline companies on this subject. We are currently thinking of leasing five or six, and we are dealing with our licenses. Soon we will come up with a Turkey-based company called Azure Air. We initially allocated $10 million for this project," Gül said.