OYAK sets new roadmap, shifts growth focus to energy, logistics and high-tech
Facing global pressure on steel and stricter carbon costs in Europe, OYAK is steering its 138-company, 40,000-employee group away from traditional heavy industry towards faster-growing energy, logistics and high-tech fields under a new 2030 strategy.
Ordu Yardımlaşma Kurumu (OYAK)is reshaping its long-term strategy, moving away from traditional heavy industries such as steel, mining and cement towards faster-growing fields including energy, logistics and high technology. OYAK General ManagerMurat Yalçıntaşsaid the group, which employs around 40,000 people across 138 companies, has completed its2030 strategyand begun implementing a new roadmap.
Speaking at a business meeting in Istanbul hosted by Düzce Mayor and former Minister of Industry and Technology Faruk Özlü, Yalçıntaş pointed to mounting pressure on the global steel industry. “China has invested heavily in this area. As domestic consumption has weakened, it is trying to export as much as possible and cutting prices to do it. At the same time, Europe is introducing serious levies through its carbon border mechanism. This puts steel in our country under strain, and we are feeling that pressure too,” he said. “We are therefore trying to shift OYAK from slower-growth sectors such as steel and cement into much faster-growing areas: energy, logistics and high technology. It will take time, but we have started.”
The comments came on 14 November 2025, during a question-and-answer session with businesspeople at Özlü’s “business world meetings” in Istanbul.
OYAK TARGETS MULTI-AXIS GROWTH IN LOGISTICS
Yalçıntaş described logistics as one of the central pillars of the new strategy, outlining a multi-axis growth plan spanning ports, maritime transport and rail.
“In logistics we are considering growth on two, even three axes,” he said. “First, port investments: we currently have three ports and will add new ones both in Turkey and abroad. Second, sea transportation: we see very strong potential in this sector, but as Turkey, are we where we should be? No. There is still a long way to go. We are talking to shipowners about vessel acquisitions and can build a strong fleet. We also operate in railways, and there too we can add new lines, locomotives and wagons.”
By combining ports, a merchant fleet and rail operations under one umbrella, OYAK aims to build an integrated logistics platform that can support both its own industrial companies and Turkey’s wider foreign trade.
2.2 GW SOLAR LICENCE AND LARGE-SCALE ENERGY INVESTMENTS
Energy is the second major axis of the strategy. Yalçıntaş said OYAK currently holds2.2 gigawatts of self-consumption solar power licencesand is preparing for larger investments in energy production.
According to Yalçıntaş, the foundation of these plans is a group-wide digital transformation. “First of all, digital transformation will be completed across all our companies,” he noted. “Erdemir is at the forefront here and will probably benefit the most from this process.”
He added that through OYAK Yatırım the group has also started investing in startup ventures in both Turkey and abroad. OYAK has established a structure in the Netherlands to invest in funds with a focus on artificial intelligence and digital transformation companies, and plans to channel significant resources into this area.
138 COMPANIES IN 22 COUNTRIES
Yalçıntaş also set out the current size and reach of the group. OYAK is particularly strong in mining and metallurgy, where it holds an estimated 45 percent market share. Erdemir, İsdemir and Ermaden stand out as major assets, and OYAK ranks as the seventh-largest steel producer in Europe. The group accounts for about 23 percent of Turkey’s crude steel output. Several OYAK companies rank near the top of Turkey’s ISO 500 industrial enterprises list.
“OYAK Group is currently Turkey’s second-largest corporate group in terms of assets,” he said. Of its 138 companies, 55 are located abroad and the group operates in 22 countries on six continents.
Based on 2024 results, OYAK companies pay 1.74 percent of all taxes collected in Turkey and 1 percent of total corporate tax. They are responsible for about 2.3 percent of the country’s total exports.
OYAK is also a major force in automotive. OYAK Renault produces around 400,000 vehicles per year and accounts for 37 percent of Turkey’s passenger car exports, while holding the second-largest share in the domestic market.
In logistics, OMSAN is a leading player and the first private-sector railway operator. OMSAN Denizcilik has a market share of around 11 percent in maritime transport.
CEMENT, CHEMICALS, AGRICULTURE, FOOD AND ENERGY
Beyond steel and logistics, OYAK has a significant presence in construction materials, chemicals, agriculture and food.
In cement, OYAK’s foreign partner Taiwanese TCC holds a 70 percent stake. Yalçıntaş noted that the group has scaled back its direct shareholding there, but said OYAK Çimento still leads the domestic market in Turkey with an estimated 15 percent share. The group is also a major producer in concrete and kraft paper.
Yalçıntaş highlighted four companies in chemicals and agriculture that OYAK is “particularly proud of.” Akdeniz Chemson is a leading producer of PVC stabilisers globally, Almatis is a major alumina supplier worldwide, KÜMAŞ accounts for 20 percent of Turkey’s magnesite production, and Hektaş and the group’s seed company strengthen its position in agricultural inputs.
In food, OYAK has combined Sagra and Tamek under the same umbrella, creating a sizeable production base that exports to 32 countries.
In energy distribution and LPG, Total, Moil and Milangaz also operate as OYAK companies.
According to Yalçıntaş, OYAK’s total assets stand at around36 billion dollars, with annual turnover of roughly20 billion dollars.
NO IMMEDIATE PLAN TO RETURN TO BANKING
On the financial side, Yalçıntaş said the group does not plan to become a bank owner again, despite its history with OYAK Bank.
He recalled that OYAK Bank was sold during the tenure of former General Manager Coşkun Ulusoy and handed the floor to Osman Okyay, whom he described as the person with the most detailed knowledge of the sale process. Okyay said the transaction took place one month before the 2008 global financial crisis, and that had the sale been delayed, the bank’s market value could have fallen to one-tenth of the agreed price. He described the sale as a very timely and successful operation for OYAK.
Today, OYAK plans to revitalise its German subsidiary OYAK Anker Bank, while relying on OYAK Yatırım, OYAK Portföy and its insurance company to meet the group’s needs in capital markets and financial services. “We believe these structures are sufficient for our needs in finance,” Yalçıntaş said. “We do not think we will need a bank in addition.”
A MODEL INSPIRED BY THE US ARMY
Yalçıntaş also briefly recounted OYAK’s origins. Established in 1961 under Law No. 205, OYAK was designed as a complementary occupational pension fund for members of the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) and has grown into Turkey’s largest institution of its kind.
The idea first emerged during the Korean War, when Turkish soldiers serving in Korea learned in conversations with US troops that the US Army had its own pension fund. TSK personnel brought this model home, arguing that a similar structure should be created to secure the future of Turkish soldiers, and the work to establish OYAK began.
Today, when a TSK member retires, they receive a pension from the Social Security Institution (SGK) and, in addition, can either withdraw their accumulated OYAK savings as a lump sum or opt for a second retirement pension from OYAK.
500,000 MEMBERS AND THE “TWO KEYS”
OYAK currently has around500,000 members, of whom roughly 400,000 are active-duty soldiers and 100,000 are retirees. About 33 percent are compulsory members and 66 percent are voluntary. Each month, 10 percent is deducted from the salaries of active members.
Yalçıntaş addressed a common misconception that the pensions of 100,000 retired members are fully financed by the contributions of the 400,000 active members. “The 10 percent deductions alone cannot cover the pensions of nearly 100,000 retirees,” he said. “The gap is closed by the profits generated by OYAK companies.”
He underlined that OYAK’s profitability is therefore a key guarantee for members’ future incomes. OYAK pensions usually amount to around 1.5 times a member’s SGK pension. As an illustration, he noted that if the real value of total contributions deducted over 10 years of membership is about 30,000 dollars, the member typically receives three to three-and-a-half times that amount back in savings or pension income.
Yalçıntaş also rejected another widespread belief that OYAK does not pay taxes. He stressed that OYAK companies operate under the Turkish Commercial Code like any other enterprise and pay all applicable taxes. The only exemption is that no tax is levied on the pensions paid to OYAK retirees, in line with its status as a legally established occupational pension fund.
Beyond financial returns, Yalçıntaş said OYAK members have two main expectations at retirement, which he summed up as“two keys”: a home and a car. Through OYAK İnşaat, the group has built large residential complexes in many cities, while its partnership with Renault allows it to offer special campaigns to help members buy cars on favourable terms.
AUTONOMOUS STRUCTURE AND LAYERED GOVERNANCE
Finally, Yalçıntaş outlined OYAK’s governance model. The institution is autonomous, receives no public funds and is not subordinated to any ministry or public body.
At the top sits a 75-member Representatives Assembly made up of officers, non-commissioned officers, gendarmes, specialist sergeants and civil servants, elected to represent the 500,000 members. “They are the real owners,” Yalçıntaş said.
Below this body is a 38-member General Assembly. Twenty members are elected by the Representatives Assembly, while 18 are designated by law. The General Assembly in turn elects an eight-member Board of Directors, of which the General Manager is a permanent member. A three-member Audit Committee oversees financial and operational compliance.
The General Assembly convenes every year at OYAK’s headquarters in Ankara’s Tandoğan district. Between 15 and 20 representatives attend in person to review all reports and accounts in detail and question any shortcomings or irregularities they identify.
Yalçıntaş recalled that for many years the traditional closing speech at these meetings was delivered by the late businessmanİbrahim Bodur, and that after his passing this role passed to his son-in-law,Osman Okyay. The anecdote underlines that OYAK is not only a large financial-industrial group, but also an institution with a strong corporate culture and memory as it executes its new roadmap towards 2030.