Karsan announced that it entered 2022 with the target of 2 times growth in all areas. Noting that they closed 2021 with 30 percent growth, Karsan CEO Okan Baş said, “This year, we aim to grow at least twice as much in electric vehicles. We will position the Karsan brand among the top 5 players in Europe. We will double our position in turnover, employment, profitability and R&D capacity.” Referring to the agreement signed with Oyak Renault in 2021 for the production of Renault Megane Sedan, Baş said, “We are rapidly continuing our work to start mass production in September. We have now produced the first body. Facilities are also being built. We have become the only manufacturer of Megane Sedan”
Karsan, one of the leading companies in the Turkish automotive industry, continues to take important steps towards growth with the motto of being 'One Step Ahead in the Future of Mobility'. Mobility company Karsan, which left 2021 behind with growth, entered 2022 with the target of 2 times growth in every field, with its increasing production capacity and export power. Karsan aims to double its R&D capacity in addition to its turnover, profitability, export and employment figures. Karsan CEO Okan Baş, who evaluated the year 2021 and announced its 2022 targets, said, “We closed 2021 with 30 percent growth and achieved a turnover of over 2 billion TL. Exports account for 70 percent of this figure. This year, we aim to grow at least twice as much in electric vehicles. The cards are being mixed again and we will position the Karsan brand among the top 5 players in Europe with our electric development vision e-Volution. In addition, we will double our position in turnover, employment, profitability and R&D capacity this year. In short, Karsan's target for this year is times two,” he said. Referring to the agreement signed with Oyak Renault in 2021 for the production of Renault Megane Sedan, Okan Baş said, “We are rapidly continuing our work to start mass production in September. We have now produced the first body. Facilities are also being built,” he said.
Leaving behind half a century after its establishment, Karsan, Turkey's leading brand offering high-tech mobility solutions, stepped up its targets this year. In this context, Karsan aims to close the year 2022 by doubling its turnover, profitability, exports, employment and R&D capacity. Karsan CEO Okan Baş evaluated the year 2021 and made important statements about the targets for this year. Explaining that they closed the last year with a growth of 30 percent, Okan Baş said, “We achieved a turnover of 2020 billion TL in 1.6. In 2021, we exceeded 2 billion TL. 70% of this figure consists of our export activities. Again, I would like to say with great pride that we doubled our electric vehicle sales turnover last year. We increased this figure, which was 2020 million TL in 213, to 2021 million TL in 402. We doubled our profitability," he said.
“We Will Enter North America with e-JEST”
Explaining his targets for this year, Okan Baş said, “We want to grow at least twice in electric vehicles. We address the entire market and aim to be one of the top five players in the market. The cards are being mixed again and we will position the Karsan brand in the top 5 in Europe with our electric development vision e-Volution. We will also enter North America with e-JEST as in Europe. Our preparations continue. Most importantly, we will double our current position in turnover, profitability, employment and R&D capacity. We will increase the number of our employees with the support we will provide especially to women employees in the field of employment. Karsan's target for this year is times two,” he said.
Renault Megane Sedan Production in September!
Stating that while they continue their activities as Karsan, they also produce on behalf of global brands, Okan Baş referred to the agreement made in 2021 with Oyak Renault regarding the production of Renault Megane Sedan brand vehicles. Baş said, “This is a 5-year project. We aim to produce 55 thousand units per year. After signing this project, the process of organizing that line, making it ready and preparing it for production started and this process continues. Our work; We are rapidly continuing to start mass production in September. We have now produced the first body. Facilities are also being built,” he said.
One Step Ahead in the Future of Mobility!
Emphasizing that Karsan is acting with the vision of "One Step Ahead in the Future of Mobility", Okan Baş said that they aim for sustainable growth in Europe and North America in this context, and that they aim to be a pioneer in future mobility technology and collaborations. Reminding that they aim to exist in the global market with Karsan branded products in the medium term, Okan Baş said that they also produce on behalf of global brands in order to use their capacities efficiently.
“We Laid the Building Blocks of Our Future Directions in 2021”
Explaining that last year was an extremely important year for Karsan, Baş said, “In 2021, we laid the important building blocks of our future business.” Explaining that Karsan has undergone a transformation in the last five years, Baş said, “The heart of the automotive is transforming from internal combustion engines to electric ones. As the most important leg of this transformation, we launched Jest's electric vehicle in 2018. A year later, we activated e-ATAK electrically. It was a big job to put these products into operation in one year.”
“We Became the First Brand of Europe to Offer a Product Range of All Sizes from 6 to 18 Meters”
“We know that we will not reach our goal by making our products electric, this is an intermediate station,” Baş said, adding, “We are working for an infrastructure for our products to be electric first and then electric autonomous. In this sense, we developed Autonomous e-ATAK in very good cooperation with ADASTEC. We launched our first driverless autonomous vehicle at the beginning of 2021. Our first test drive was held in the Kulliye by our President. The vehicle is currently used in routine operations in the Complex. In September of last year, we introduced the e-ATA Family in the large-size bus class. With this launch, as Karsan, we became the first brand in Europe to offer a fully electric product range of all sizes, from 6 meters to 18 meters, in public transportation.” Baş said, “As we move towards a sustainable future, we were evaluated at the Carbon Disclosure Project Climate Change Program level, which measures the level of environmental impacts of our company. And a report came out. As Karsan, we received the global average of «B-» in our first application. We are one of the rare companies that get this score in the first application.”
“306 Karsan Electric Vehicles on the Road in 16 Different Countries”
Okan Baş said, “When we look at the quantity, we doubled our exports in 2021 compared to the previous year. Last year, we sold 330 Karsan products to Europe. This was 147 the previous year. In addition to conventional vehicles, there are also electric ones. In 2021, 133 of our electric vehicles were included in the park in Europe. Thus, since 2019, our 306 Karsan electric vehicles have been traveling around the world in 16 different countries, mainly in France, Romania, Portugal and Germany. Of course, it may seem small compared to the sales figures of conventional vehicles, but it is very clear that we are one step ahead in a place where there is electric product transformation. From 2019 in 66, 2020 in 107 and 2021 in 133, we currently have over 2022 EV orders in our portfolio at the beginning of 200. I can say that we entered this year very quickly. The development will increase much more,” he said.
Karsan is in the top 3 of Google!
Reminding that Karsan branded vehicles are in 16 different countries, Okan Baş said, “We are also working to increase awareness of Karsan brand. Today, when 'electric bus' is typed into the world-famous search engine Google in 16 countries in their own language, the Karsan brand comes out in the top three in organic searches. This is a very important development. This shows that Karsan is on its way to becoming a preferred brand not only in Europe but also in the world.”
90 percent of Turkey's Electric Minibus and Bus Exports Are From Karsan!
Using the expressions “306 vehicles means 3 million kilometers of experience for us”, Baş said, “As Karsan, we have made 3 percent of Turkey's electric minibus and bus exports in the last 90 years. In the last three years, 344 electric minibuses and buses were sold from Turkey to Europe. We did 306 of them. This is a very serious achievement,” he said.
Karsan e-JEST and e-ATAK Segment Leader in Europe !
Explaining that Karsan e-JEST is increasing its market share every year, Baş said, “The 6-meter e-JEST had become the segment leader in all of Europe with a 2020 percent share in 43. e-JEST once again took the top spot by increasing its market share in this field to 2021 percent in 51. It became the e-JEST segment leader in the European market for 2 consecutive years. We will further increase these figures, which show that e-JEST dominates the market more. Karsan e-ATAK, on the other hand, became the leader of its class in Europe with a 30 percent share in the electric city midibus segment.
Driverless e-ATAK to Carry Passengers in Michigan and Norway!
Explaining that e-ATAK was tested for trial purposes at the University of Michigan campus in the USA last year, Baş said that passenger transport permission on public roads is about to be obtained. Baş said, “This is a great source of pride for us. On the one hand, it is also important that it is the first bus to get permission to travel in this sense in the USA. In Europe, we have another project related to driverless e-ATAK. We made our first export to Norway in Northern Europe. All of these are products of our innovative and entrepreneurial spirit.”
We Signed Firsts in Electric Vehicle Tenders in 2021!
Baş said, “After the launch, we sent our first 10 vehicles of 10 meters from the e-ATA Family to the Romanian Municipality of Slatina.” Because our first products are Karsan's first big buses. We will of course add new ones after that. It also has signals. Towards the end of 2021, we made the biggest electric bus agreement in Turkey, worth 18 million Euros, for 56 35 meters long electric buses in Romania. We will send a total of 56 18-meter e-ATAs by the end of this year.
In 2021, we broke new ground in electric vehicle tenders. In Italy, we made a framework agreement with Consip for 80 e-ATAKs and we have already received the first 11 orders. In addition, for the first time in Italy, we won the Cagliari Municipality's 4 e-ATAK tenders and we will deliver them this year. In Germany, we delivered 5 e-ATAKs to the Weilheim Municipality, which is a public institution for the first time. We entered the Luxembourg market for the first time with e-ATAK. We delivered 4 e-JESTs, Bulgaria's first electric minibus. We made electric gesture sales to Croatia for the first time. We introduced e-JEST in Mexico. And with the Karsan brand, we entered Ukraine for the first time with a fleet of 150 units consisting of Jest and Atak.”
“We are the Leader of the Last 10 Years in Big Buses with CNG”
Explaining that “We are assertive in Turkey in terms of green CNG vehicles”, Baş said, “In this sense, we have signed a very large fleet in Mersin, including 205 CNG and 67 ATAK. We have delivered 87 CNG buses of this, and we will deliver the rest in 2022. On the one hand, there are the first signals about the electrification in Turkey, but it will enter Europe with a little more delay. Nevertheless, interest in CNG buses increased. We have been the leader of Turkey for the last 12 years in terms of 18 and 10 meter long buses with CNG, namely natural gas. In the last 10 years, there are over 1500 CNG parks sold in Turkey. 750 of these are Menarinibus, which we sell as Karsan. We have a 48 percent share. Meanwhile, Ankara EGO Municipality had a project to renew its aging fleet. In 2021, within the scope of the project, 51 ATAKs began to roam in Ankara as the newest and youngest fleet.”
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