Koç spoke about the strategies that the Koç Holding Group has taken to overcome the economic crisis, and the transformation that the company has undergone to deal with the crisis’s impact. “Since September 2008, we’ve been transforming our goals and targets based on the economic situation. We’ve been cautious about possible threats, while at the same time evaluating alternative opportunities within sectors that we are involved in. By doing this, we’ve taken the necessary steps to overcome this crisis and have made the required infrastructural changes to emerge even stronger during the period of recovery.” Koç continued by revealing the fruits of these transformative changes, noting: “Because of these strategies, we were able to increase our turnover in 2008 by 19 percent and our operating profits by 40 percent, an achievement that we realized during the hardest periods of the economic crisis. Our companies account for 11 percent of all of Turkey’s exports and 13 percent of all tax payments. I would like to proudly announce that we’ve become the world’s 172nd largest company.”
Speaking about the current investments of the firm, Koç noted that in the following months TÜPRAŞ will work to increase efficiency and expand the firm’s distribution channels and will invest in ending supply shortages of diesel fuel by starting the Residuum Upgrading Project -- an efficiency-increasing project in the production of diesel fuel.
TÜPRAŞ CEO Yavuz Erkut also spoke at the event and stated that the economic crisis had led to a significant decrease in petroleum demand, meaning that refineries were working much below capacity.
Erkut revealed that petroleum processing capacity utilization was at 61 percent, a record low after 10 years of capacity utilization of 90 percent. Erkut noted that this capacity utilization would increase after the crisis and that TÜPRAŞ would be one of the most profitable firms in the world petroleum market.
Erkut also noted that although 2010 would be a better year for the economy, he expected the real recovery to occur in 2011. Speaking on environmental impact, Erkut highlighted that “we’ve spent TL 92 million on the environmental obligations that were put forth when we took over the company from the state. We’ve therefore completed 92 percent of the work required of us. The energy savings projects that we’ve implemented in our refineries have saved TL 55.3 million in 2008, and TL 40 million in the first 10 months of this year.”
