Sanko purchases local tractor maker

ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News

Sanko Chair Konukoğlu says he wants to grow tractor business. DHA photo

Sanko Makine, a local firm active in the industrial machine business since 1999, has purchased one of Turkey’s oldest tractor companies, Başak Traktör, according to Ekonomist magazine.

Sanko plans to invest in new machinery for the company, which is based in Adapazarı in Turkey’s northwest, and plans to produce for the domestic market and export to the foreign market. Sanko’s purchase of Başak is estimated at about $30 million.

Renovation on the way

“By making new investments in Başak Traktör we will renovate the inside of the factory. We will produce better quality tractors both for the domestic and export markets,” said Sanko Holding Executive Board Director Abdülkadir Konukoğlu. Konuoğlu did not confirm the $30 million price tag to the Ekonomist.

“We already had industrial machinery. We want to grow our tractor business. We will continue production in the same facility in Adapazarı,” he said.

Başak Traktör was established in 1914. In 1968 the company began producing Ford tractors. The plant is built on a 250,000 meter space and has an annual production capacity of 1,500 tractors.