ESBAS-The Aegean Free Zone Home

Introduction

The AEGEAN FREE ZONE was established in 1990. It is based on the Build-Operate-Transfer model that was implemented by ESBAS, the firm fully responsible for the completion and operations of all of the infrastructure and facilities within the Zone. (This was authorized according to a protocol agreement signed by the Free Trade Zones General Directorship in Ankara and ESBAS).

ESBAS is a private-sector company whose major shareholder is EAC Turkey International, a U.S. company. Other shareholders are: the Izmir Municipality, the Izmir Chamber of Commerce, the Aegean Chamber of Industry, and the Izmir Regional State Office.

The AFZ is located in the Gaziemir district of Izmir and encompasses 550 acres (220 hectares). All of the infrastructure and construction have been completed in a 1,340,000 sq.m. area within the Zone where 225 local and 75 foreign companies are already operational. 14,500 people are currently employed in the Aegean Free Zone.

The cumulative trade volume since the beginning of the Zone's inauguration has reached 28 billion US dollars. These figures show that the AFZ is the leading free zone in Turkey as it generates the most foreign revenue. During the last 10 years 7% of the direct foreign investment has been realised in the AFZ. Leading multinational companies operate in the Zone; including Delphi Automotive (manufactures electrical panels for the automotive sector), Hugo Boss (produces men’s apparel, ladies’ garments and sports apparel), Delphi Diesel (manufactures injector nozzles, valves and pump parts for diesel motors), FTB (manufactures air craft fasteners), Aero (manufactures wind turbine blades for wind energy power plants), Eldor Electronics (manufactures high-tech television transformers), and PFW (manufactures oil tanks and piping systems of aircrafts).

The prominent sectors are: electronics, food processing and packaging, machinery assembly, sensitive measuring equipment, metal joints, kitchen cabinet assembly, textiles and leather manufacturing facilities. Commercial products include textiles and textile-manufacturing machinery, leather and leather goods, chemical products and household appliances.

Goal

The goal of the AFZ—Turkey's first production-based free zone—is to be operating at full capacity by the year 2012 when there will be 30,000 employees in the 500 industrial companies that either use or produce advanced technology. It hopes to realize an annual trade volume of 5 billion US dollars. Already the foremost free zone in Turkey, its aim is to become one of the best technoparks in the world.

To manage the free zone impeccably.
To provide land, building facilities and services to all operatives in the AFZ.
To enable firms that use or produce high technology via technology transfer (such as offset, licensing, patenting, or joint-venture procedures) to operate in the Zone.
To support technology-based endeavors and to enable them to function within AFZ incubators.
To provide the managerial, technological and physical support to enable small and medium-sized business ventures to operate.
To interact with university and research centers, and facilitate the transfer of technology between such establishments and operatives in the AFZ.
To create a world-class technopark with access to quality standards of housing and social facilities.
To enable the commercialization of knowledge and technology, and thus provide an invaluable service to the Turkish economy.

ESBAS Takes Pride of Its 4 Quality Certificates

ESBAS became the only Turkish Free Zone Development and Operating Company to be awarded with 4 quality certificates: ISO 9001/2000 Quality Management System Certificate, ISO 14001 Environmental Management Standard, OHSAS 18001 Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series, and HACCP Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point Certificates