Reassessing Cementir's Turkish Positioning
Reassessing Cementir's Turkish PositioningSIGNIFICANT NEWS
Cementir sold its small Kars plant in northeastern Turkey for €51m (13x EBITDA). It is a minor move, representing less than 2% of group revenue and EBITDA. With just 0.6Mt capacity (vs. 5.4Mt in Turkey), Kars was a non-core, stand-alone asset outside Cementir’s integrated operations in western and central Turkey. However, the disposal aligns with Cementir’s strategy to streamline its footprint, free up capital, and focus on higher-growth, vertically integrated regions.
ANALYSIS
The €51m disposal of the Kars plant may appear minor at first glance — with the asset contributing just €3.9m in 2024 EBITDA and ~€27m in revenue — but strategically, it sharpens Cementir’s positioning in Turkey. Kars was a remote, stand-alone facility in the northeast, lacking the integration and export logistics that define the rest of Cementir’s Turkish footprint. Its removal from the portfolio reflects a clear intent: consolidate around the western and southeastern hubs, where synergies across cement, ready-mix, and aggregates are maximised, and where geopolitical proximity to Syria and Ukraine opens long-term optionality.
From a valuation perspective, the rest of Cementir’s Turkish operations appear to be an important component of the group’s overall equity story. The company’s 97.3% stake in Çimentas Izmir Çimento, which is currently valued at approximately €900m, accounts for close to 39% of Cementir’s total market capitalisation (€2.26bn). Çimentas also holds a 50.3% stake in CimBeton, a listed ready-mix concrete company with a market cap of around €85.5m. While the limited free float (~25%) may contribute to elevated trading multiples (Çimentas currently trades at 32.9x trailing PE), the listing provides a reference point for estimating the value of Cementir’s Turkish footprint. Given this, the relatively high share of group valuation attributable to Turkey may suggest that other parts of the portfolio — including Cementir’s white cement leadership, European operations, and net cash position — are not yet fully reflected in the market price.
Cementir’s Turkish capacity (excluding Kars) sits at ~4.8mt, with plant locations aligned to likely reconstruction corridors. The Edirne asset is well-placed for Ukraine, while Izmir and Elazig serve as potential springboards into Syria and broader Levant markets. Even modest volume flows (0.5mt incremental, or ~10% of capacity) could deliver outsized bottom-line impact given Turkey’s structurally low utilisation and high operating leverage. With local peers such as OYAK and Limak concentrated in the same regions, Cementir is well positioned to compete — but also uniquely placed as a multinational operator with access to group-wide balance sheet discipline and export relationships.
IMPACT
While the Kars disposal has no material impact on Cementir’s near-term financials — contributing less than 2% of EBITDA — it reinforces management’s disciplined geographic strategy as Cementir quietly de-risks its footprint while preparing for upside.
Cementir Holding is an Italian multinational company that produces and distributes grey and white cement, ready-mix concrete, aggregates and concrete products.
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