Eczacibasi Yatirim Ortakligi : Eczacıbaşı is on the investment fast track

Building on the investment drive launched in 2022 on its 80th anniversary, the Eczacıbaşı Group has doubled the tissue paper production capacity of its Manisa factory in 2023, the 100th anniversary of the Turkish Republic, with an investment of €65 million. This new investment raises Eczacıbaşı Consumer Products' total tissue paper production capacity to 250,000 tonnes.
Eczacıbaşı Consumer Products, a subsidiary of the Eczacıbaşı Group, has completed a €65 million paper machine investment at its Manisa factory. The new investment has doubled the capacity of the Manisa factory and increased the total tissue paper production capacity of Eczacıbaşı Consumer Products to 250 thousand tonnes. This investment brings the amount of investments realized by the Eczacıbaşı Group in the last two years to over €700 million.Having pioneered the development of personal hygiene habits and the growth of the market by introducing tissue paper to Turkey, Eczacıbaşı Consumer Products will consolidate its leadership in Turkey's branded market Turkey thanks to the capacity increase, while also increasing its exports as part of its internationalization plans.In his speech at the opening ceremony of the 5th paper machine production line in Manisa, Bülent Eczacıbaşı, Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the Eczacıbaşı Group, said: "We continue to mobilize to heal the wounds of the earthquake disaster, and we believe investments that contribute to the economy of our country are especially important and valuable in this period. The Eczacıbaşı Group introduced tissue paper to Turkey and pioneered the sector, so we are happy to realize a new investment in Manisa on the 100th anniversary of our republic."Having once served as general manager of Eczacıbaşı Consumer Products, formerly İpek Kağıt, Bülent Eczacıbaşı added, "One of the major milestones in our Group's story, which began in the '40s, was our investment in the field of tissue paper. With the investments we have made and the products we have offered over the years in the areas of health, cleanliness, and hygiene, we contributed first to our country's efforts to become self-sufficient and then to its international competitiveness. Our Yalova and Manisa factories and our cleaning paper brands have played a very important role in Eczacıbaşı's story.With its brands, Eczacıbaşı Consumer Products makes us proud as the pioneer and leader of Turkey's tissue paper sector, which grows year by year in terms of capacity, production, and exports. I hope that this investment, which we realized on the 100th anniversary of our republic, will be beneficial for Manisa and our country. As the Eczacıbaşı Group, we will continue to fulfill our responsibility in both economic and social fields in order to address and together heal the wounds caused by the earthquakes."
"The investment drive we started on our Group's 80th year continues."
Atalay Gümrah, CEO of the Eczacıbaşı Group, noted that the investment continued the investment drive started in 2022, the Group's 80th anniversary, and would significantly contribute to the company's growth targets. "With this €65 million investment in a 5th paper machine at the Manisa factory, the total value of our Group's investments in the last two years has exceeded €700 million. This investment will facilitate new investments that will allow us to introduce more innovative products in the Turkish market, where we are the leader. Moreover, it will contribute significant production power to Eczacıbaşı Consumer Products' internationalization journey."
"Another decisive step on the trajectory to our growth targets"
Bülent Kozlu, CEO of Eczacıbaşı Consumer Products, pointed out Eczacıbaşı Consumer Products' continual growth since 1969, when it established Turkey's first tissue paper factory Turkey, and how it has drawn on the strength of the Eczacıbaşı Group to expand into international markets:"Tissue paper sales in Turkey have reached TL 11.5 billion, excluding out-of-home sales, and account for the largest share of our country's personal care market. Eczacıbaşı Consumer Products is already the leading company in the branded tissue category with a 22% market share. Today, we are happy to bring on stream our 5th paper machine production line, which will further strengthen this position. With this machine, which we commissioned with an investment of €65 million, we are doubling the production capacity of our Manisa factory and increasing our total capacity by 40% to 250 thousand tonnes.Including the investments in tissue paper capacity we made first in Morocco and then in Manisa, and further investments in Manisa in the coming period, we will have realized a total investment of €110 million in the three-year period 2022-2024. This investment will not only expand our exports of finished products, it will also produce paper bobbins for our Morocco factory. We are proud to add value to our country through our investments, production, employment and exports."
The new investment also supports sustainability goals Eczacıbaşı Consumer Products' 5th paper machine investment also supports the organization's sustainability target of producing more efficiently and with less energy. The new investment uses advanced automation systems and innovative artificial intelligence technologies to achieve greater energy and water savings, and to enhance the production and sustainability standards of the Manisa plant, especially in terms of quality, efficiency, occupational health, and safety.After the drying process, one of the most important stages in the paper production process, the waste heat discharged from the chimney is reused, this way improving energy efficiency by as much as 10% per tonne of output while reducing associated CO2 emissions. The investment also reduces electricity consumption thanks to the use of high energy-efficient motors.