Through Salinen BeteiligungsGmbH (SBG), Österreichische Salinenaktiengesellschaft has obtained 50 percent holdings in both Safir Tuz and Safir Kaya, two Turkish salt producers with access to the largest salt deposits in eastern Turkey. In making this strategic acquisition, Austria’s only salt manufacturer has taken a major logistical step towards further expansion and, above all, safeguarding the company’s sites in Austria. In the process, Salinen Austria AG (SAAG) is assuming industrial leadership of the key Turkish joint venture.

The deposits in the salt mines of the Safir Group near Ankara are large enough to provide the Salinen Group with the raw material for many years to come. Rock salt and evaporated salt are already in production on the site. Thanks to investment from Austria well into the tens of millions, the Turkish mines will be expanded and the most modern evaporated salt plant in Turkey will be constructed. On the basis of the funding, which has already started to flow, total production in Turkey is expected to rise to around one million tons of evaporated salt and rock salt in the years ahead. With more than 80 million inhabitants, Turkey’s domestic market represents an excellent base market, with attractive export markets also in the vicinity.

“The investment is genuinely a win-win situation. On the one hand, the Turkish commitment will consolidate the medium-term investment and expansion plan for salt specialities in Austria; on the other, the Safir Group is providing us with a bridge to new markets. Considering its size, the domestic Turkish market is attractive. Improved logistical options are also bringing the Middle East, Russia, Africa and Southeast Asia within reach,” says Peter Untersperger, Chief Executive Officer of Österreichische Salinenaktiengesellschaft.

Over the past few years, the Salinen Group has increasingly felt the impact of rocketing commodity and energy prices in Austria. In recent months especially, electricity and gas prices have doubled, along with pallet prices – and there is no end to the price spiral in sight. The second base in Turkey will open up many possibilities as the tradition-conscious company continues to pursue a course of growth while securing jobs and workplaces in Austria.