Representatives of Turkish business circles studied the investment potential of Mogilev Region. The region became the sole point of the program outside the capital for a large Turkish delegation that arrived in Belarus on a resumed Turkish Airlines flight on the Istanbul–Minsk route.

Large-scale business mission

The delegation included about 50 businessmen representing various sectors. Before the visit to Mogilev, foreign partners spent two days working in Minsk, where they discussed promising projects at meetings in the Belarusian ministries of economy, industry, transport, and energy.

The program for staying in Mogilev Region envisaged a business meeting. Here the Turkish side was presented with the export potential and products of the residents of the Mogilev Free Economic Zone for subsequent entry into the Turkish market. At the same time, a visit to industrial investment sites for the placement of Turkish business was planned.

Mogilev FEZ as a driver of development

The Mogilev Free Economic Zone serves as a key driver of the region's economic development. Moreover, it is an effective platform for attracting foreign capital. As of today, it has 19 land plots with a total area of over 3,712 hectares.

Here, 59 residents from 11 countries worldwide operate successfully. The total volume of investments in the implemented projects exceeds 1.9 billion euros. Despite the relatively small number of residents, they account for almost half of the Mogilev Region's total export shipments.

The companies are represented in sectors in demand by the Turkish side, such as chemical industry, mechanical engineering, metalworking, woodworking, furniture production, light industry, and the production of building materials.

Goals of the regional visit

Pavel Marinenko, Chairman of the Belarusian part of the Belarusian-Turkish Business Council, noted the main goal of the visit. First and foremost, it is necessary to demonstrate the investment potential of the FEZ and to facilitate the establishment of Turkish business in Mogilev Region

"Always better to hear from one's fellow countrymen and partners who can confirm that in Belarus and particularly in the Mogilev region conduct business comfortably and profitably," emphasized Pavel Marinenko.

Airway for Development of Relations

Stated the importance of expanding contacts was the Turkish Ambassador to Belarus, Güçlü Jam Üşük. The diplomat underlined that resuming regular air services is intended to give an impetus for further rapprochement of peoples and business communities.

The Ambassador noted that at present the bilateral trade turnover between the countries amounts to slightly less than two billion dollars. The main task of the visit is to find reserves for its increase.

"Our economies do not compete but complement each other. We propose to produce together and jointly market the products on third-country markets," summarized Güçlü Jam Üşük.

Promising Areas of Cooperation

Interest in expanding presence was confirmed by the chairman of the Turkish part of the Belarusian-Turkish Business Cooperation Council, Fatih Üşük. He considers the key goal of the visit to be increasing the number of companies with Turkish capital in the region.

"The SEEZ 'Mogilev' Association provides on a permanent basis up-to-date information on investment opportunities and free production sites, which we actively bring to the attention of business circles in Turkey. As one of the most promising areas of cooperation during this visit, he named the sphere of automobile spare parts production, possessing high investment potential," noted Fatih Üşük.

Practical Experience of Cooperation

A substantive conversation with Turkish businessmen took place with representatives of the OMSK Carbon Mogilev LLC. This is a major producer of technical carbon used in rubber technology industry, in particular in manufacturing car tires, as well as black pigment in plastic production.

"We are connected with Turkey by long-standing partnership in the field of export supplies. The current visit of a large delegation was used for a personal presentation of production facilities and strengthening business ties. The purpose of negotiations was to discuss specific commercial proposals aimed at further increasing volumes of Belarusian exports to the Turkish market," shared General Director Marat Igizbayev.

Leading product safety specialist of the Omsk Carbon Group holding, Olga Mindia shvili, also joined the negotiations. She arrived for the meeting from the Russian Federation.

"In the era of modern technologies, one can work remotely, but personal meetings take cooperation to a new level. Turkey is an extremely promising market, opening up great opportunities for the holding's development. It is one of the largest customers for the sale of our plant's products, with the potential to further expand into other countries' markets," she emphasized.