Governor Pehlivan: “Our province will stand out with its defense industry investments and will become one of the preferred provinces.”

The defense industry companies from Mersin became the center of attention at the International Defense Aviation and Space Industry Fair SAHA EXPO 2024 held in Istanbul. Governor Ali Hamza Pehlivan, who attended the fair, stated, “Our province will stand out with defense industry investments and will be one of the preferred provinces.”

The organization, coordinated by the Mersin Governorship in cooperation with the Mersin Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MTSO) and the Mersin Tarsus Organized Industrial Zone (MTOSB), allowed Mersin companies serving the defense industry to participate in the SAHA EXPO Defense, Aviation and Space Industry Fair, organized by SAHA Istanbul, the largest industrial cluster in Europe, with a joint booth. In addition to Mersin Governor Ali Hamza Pehlivan, the Mersin stand was also supported by MTSO Board Chairman Hakan Sefa Çakır, Vice Chairman Mustafa Özdamar, Board Members Gökben Gökbulut, İdris Üstemel, Abdulkadir Orgun, and MTOSB President Sabri Tekli, and attracted interest from visitors.

Among the visitors to the booth during the fair were Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır, Minister of Interior Ali Yerlikaya, Chief of General Staff General Metin Gürak, Deputy Commander of the Gendarmerie General Corps Major General Aykut Tanrıverdi, Istanbul Provincial Gendarmerie Commander Lieutenant General Yusuf Kenan Topçu, and many companies, including Haluk Bayraktar, General Manager of Baykar, which operates in the Turkish aviation and defense industry.

30 companies operate in the defense industry in Mersin

Evaluating the SAHA EXPO 2024 Fair, Governor Pehlivan mentioned that Mersin, which made its first participation in 2022, has taken its place in the 4th edition of SAHA EXPO 2024 this year as well. He stated that 11 companies operating in the defense industry were present at the Mersin stand, and 4 other companies set up their own independent booths. Pehlivan said, “Our Turkey, under the leadership of our President, has reached an 80% local and national rate in the defense industry as a result of the efforts carried out within the scope of the National Technology Initiative. This situation creates excitement among our entrepreneurs across the country. It causes those operating in this field to expand their areas of activity and allows new entrepreneurs to emerge. We have 30 companies operating in the defense industry in Mersin. 21 of these companies are located in the Mersin Tarsus Organized Industrial Zone, while the others operate in various places outside the OIZ.” He also noted that the number of companies operating in Mersin is steadily increasing.

“The 5th stage of the new expansion area has been approved”

Emphasizing that steps have been taken to further expand the capacities of existing companies in Mersin and to create areas for new investments, Pehlivan pointed out that the most concrete example of this is the Mersin Tarsus OIZ, which was the first established in the city. He expressed that they are working as the Entrepreneurial Committee and Board of Directors to create new areas here and continued:

“We recently received another good result regarding the creation of new areas. Our Mersin Tarsus OIZ currently covers an area of 823 hectares and operates with 4 stages. The work for the 4th stage was completed last year, and we allocated the land. We are receiving 41 new companies and new investments. Meanwhile, the work for the 5th and 6th regions continues. The new expansion area of the 5th stage, which will be established on an area of 256 hectares in the Mersin Tarsus Organized Industrial Zone, has been approved by our Ministry of Industry and Technology, and our Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry has also granted the necessary permissions. Here, we will have the opportunity to allocate new areas both to our existing companies and to other companies that will apply. We will also have the opportunity to attract investments by allocating land to entrepreneurs who will invest in innovation, technology, and especially Defense Industry Technologies in our province. One of the reasons for our presence at the SAHA EXPO 2024 fair is to emphasize that we have suitable places for investments, thus attracting external investment to Mersin.”

“Our province will stand out with defense industry investments”

Pehlivan emphasized that Mersin is a province that stands out with its agriculture, industry, trade, logistics, and tourism activities, and that all existing sectors are increasingly developing. He stated, “It is a dynamic city whose star is shining brighter and brighter. I believe that investments in the defense industry will also show themselves much more in our province. Our province will stand out with defense industry investments and will be one of the preferred provinces. Our duty is to follow all these processes together with the stakeholders of the sector. On this occasion, we invite our entrepreneurs who have investment intentions in the defense field to Mersin.”