At the second session of the SteelOrbis Turkish Steel Market Conference held in Istanbul on November 13, Ufuk Leflef, the president of the Stainless Steel Development Association (PASDER), gave a presentation during which he touched upon the advantages of stainless steel usage and also discussed stainless steel in relation to Turkey.
Underlining that stainless steel is produced for long-term usage, Mr. Leflef reminded his listeners that stainless steel products are 90 percent recyclable, and thus possess long-lasting value. Mr. Leflef said that Turkey does not itself produce stainless steel, but meets its needs for stainless steel products via imports. In 2008, Turkey imported 238,000 metric tons of stainless steel products.
Ufuk Leflef went on to remark that in European countries the annual stainless steel consumption per capita is in the range of 12-14 kilograms, while in Turkey the figure is less than four kilograms. Emphasizing that the establishment of stainless steel capacity would require a large amount of investment, Mr. Leflef said that it is still too early for such an investment in Turkey, adding that, once decided, stainless steel capacities should be fully integrated. Furthermore, Mr. Leflef stated that Turkey should also focus on the production of ferrochrome, which is an important raw material for stainless steel production.