Strategic Importance of Polymers for Turkey Highlighted at Bayegan Symposium

Bayegan organized this comprehensive first Polymer Symposium, bringing together major domestic and foreign industry leaders at Istanbul Green Park Hotel & Convention Center. The meeting, attended with interest by over 400 industrialists from various parts of Turkey and renowned CEOs from abroad, opened with remarks by Bayegan Board Chairman Ercüment Bayegan, who stated: "Given that this is the first symposium of this scale in Turkey, we believe the discussions and presentations will be highly decisive and guiding for the future of our sector." He noted that technology advances, remaining in place would be wrong, and that strength emerges from unity. Emphasizing that polymers are a particularly important sector for Turkey, Bayegan said: "We are the world's second-largest importer, and in this context we clearly have added value globally. After automobiles, plastics are currently our largest export. We must see the benefits of this positive trend. With new investments and a shift toward high-value-added materials, I believe we can see this more clearly. For our near-term objectives, we aim to increase our existing capacity further, raise tonnages in line with Turkey's rising exports, and conduct all of this supply process smoothly and without issues with our partners." Providing information about Bayegan, Ercüment Bayegan mentioned that 5-10 year plans have been developed in the finance and logistics sectors, noting that Bayegan holds a global position not only in polymers but also in olefins, the raw material for polymers.

What Will Raw Material Prices Be?

Meanwhile, the symposium featured a first-time "smartphone poll" application. During responses to a question about oil prices, Ercüment Bayegan assessed: "The final price that crude oil will reach by year-end is 60 dollars." Speaking at the panel, PAGEV Chairman Yavuz Eroğlu made the statement "Petrochemistry and plastics—Turkey is a land of opportunity," while İKMİB Chairman Murat Akyüz offered notable comments on the plastics sector's export assessments. Continuing the symposium, Mutlaq Al Morished, CEO of TASNEE, Saudi Arabia's largest private petrochemical company, took the floor and explained that his company processes titanium and polymers in many of its products, used from aircraft to ships and even in nuclear submarine construction. Nabil Hamdy, Trade Director of EPPC, one of Egypt's renowned petrochemical companies, and Dr. Tarek Zaghloul, CEO of OPC, one of Egypt's leading petrochemical organizations, shared with guests the effects of changing trade factors worldwide on the polyolefin sector, producer strategies, and their forecasts regarding the Turkish market. Furthermore, Rüya Bayegan answered questions and answers by providing interesting examples, while carefully addressing matters requiring attention in the sector. On the symposium's final day, Bayegan Sales Director Şah Karataş drew interest by addressing various issues in the sector with examples. Subsequently, Chemours Country Manager Özlem Karakaş on "Chemours' Position in Turkey's Polymer Sector," IHS Market Analyst Andrea Borruso on "Current Developments and the Impact of Projects in Asia, North America and Russia on Turkey," Business Development Director from Chemorbis Mirza Kadiç on "Sector Assessment and External Risks," ARKAS Logistics Transportation Services Turkey Manager Melik Soysal and ARKAS Holding Agency Group and Group Vice Chairman Cenk Değer on "Developments in the Logistics Sector and Alternative Solution Proposals" made important assessments. Symposium participants expressed satisfaction and wished for the repetition of such a beneficial symposium. Ercüment Bayegan stated his satisfaction: "I thank the colleagues who participated in the symposium; they heeded our call. They supported us. I wish this support to continue for years and unity to grow further. In short, if we can increase our exports and create benefit for the end user, we are fortunate indeed."