EBRD approves $9m loan for Ulker

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has approved an almost $9 million (6.76 million euros) loan to fund expansion onto the Romanian market by Ulker, Turkey’s leading food producer, a project which will cost some $22 million. Ulker owns a production facility close to Bucharest, which is 80% complete and will make biscuits, chocolate and margarine. The Turkish group has similar expansion plans for the Kazakhstan market, which will also be funded through EBRD. “The two projects will support long-term modernisation and competition in the food industry in both countries,” said Noreen Doyle, First Vice President of EBRD. Ersin Topcuoglu, general manager of Yildiz Holding, Ulker Group’s parent company, says the two loans form an essential part of Ulker’s expansion into the Eastern Europe and Central Asia where there are markets with very high potential. Ulker will buy the raw material it needs for its products from local producers and will use domestic dealers. ZF