On April the 13^th was held the opening ceremony of the production line of Anadolu Landini, a Joint Venture founded last September by Turkish multinational Anadolu Group and the Italian multinational Argo Tractors, manufacturer of Landini, McCormick and Valpadana tractors with headquarter in Fabbrico (Reggio Emilia). The new plant is dedicated to the Landini “Globe” tractors manufacturing and it is located in the facilities of Şekerpınar, Kocaeli, Turkey.

Attending the ceremony were Argo Tractors S.p.A Chairman Mr. Valerio Morra, Argo Tractors S.p.A. Board Members Mr. Alberto Morra and Mr. Simeone Morra, the Republic of Turkey Minister of Science, Industry and Technology Dr. Faruk Özlü, Anadolu Group Chairman Tuncay Özilhan, Anadolu Group CEO Hurşit Zorlu; the President of Automotive Group, Bora Koçak, Anadolu Landini General Manager Hayati Kösoğlu.

Argo Tractors S.p.A Chairman Mr. Valerio Morra stated: “Turkey’s agricultural production is relevant as far as volumes and quality and this investment holds a strategic importance for us”. Mr. Morra stated that the successful work carried out with Anadolu Group since 2012 has been very effective. He also added: “The four Landini Globe models ranging from 50 to 75 HP will be produced in the Anadolu Landini’s facility in Şekerpınar. These models are specifically designed for the soil conditions of Turkey, but I am sure they will be praised and will be highly demanded throughout all those markets sharing similar requirements.”

 Anadolu Group Chairman Tuncay Özilhan declared that ‘domestic production’ in the automotive sector is the primary focus of the Anadolu Group and added: “We are glad to merge Anadolu Group’s 68 years of experience with our Italian partner’s 134 years of expertise in tractor design, development and production. This investment will improve our Countries agriculture, export and employment”.

While underlining the importance of tractors production in Turkey, the President of Automotive Group, Bora Koçak said: “With 72,032 tractors manufactured in Turkey last year, the all-time record was broken in this sector. As Anadolu Group, we want to grow further in agriculture, which is one of our strategic priorities. We aim to increase our investments even further with the support received from our government. We aim to carry our partnership with Argo Tractors to a higher level”. Bora Koçak added: “The localization ratio in tractor production will reach around 42% by the end of this year and we plan an increase to 85% by 2019. Afterwards we plan to have that ratio up to 100% by 2020 for certain models distributed within Turkey.”

Anadolu Landini General Manager, Hayati Kösoğlu, specified: “the Landini tractors will enable our farmers to reach high-performance, powerful and high-quality tractors at a competitive price. By end of 2018 Landini Globe series will cover almost half of market demands. Moreover, we aim to add in production other Landini models such as Rex, Powerfarm and 5H. Our partner Argo Tractors’ experience and history in agricultural mechanization and our farmers’ high satisfaction with Landini tractors are the pillars of this project.”