$145 Million Austal Contract Highlights Relationship with Turkey

Deputy Prime Minister and Trade Minister Mark Vaile, meeting with the Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan in Canberra today, welcomed the growing commercial ties between Australia and Turkey,h ighlighted by WA ship builder Austal's $145 million ferry contract.

This contract will see Austal build two passenger ferries for the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality.

Mr Vaile said "The visit by Prime Minister Erdogan and the largest ever Turkish government and business delegation to Australia highlights the expanding trade relationship between Australia and Turkey and the export opportunities for Australian companies."

"Turkey's expanding and modernising economy positions it as an increasingly important export market for Australian companies. The Turkish economy has grown faster than OECD economies on average during the past 20 years which has increased the purchasing power of its 73 million residents.

"Austal's exporting success demonstrates Australia's world class design innovation and manufacturing expertise which is generating a lot of interest in international markets.

"Austal employs more than a 1000 people in its Australian operations and has had tremendous ex port success having sold its high performance vessels to 30 countries. Austal's deal with the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality is a great achievement for a company that continues to build upon its impressive export record," Mr Vaile said.

Austal received extensive support from the Australian Government including Austrade and the Export Finance and Insurance Corporation (EFIC) in securing this valuable contract.

Another recent example of the developing commercial ties is Incremental Petroleum's acquisition in October of one of the largest oil fields in Turkey. The Western-Australian based company, which has offices in Ankara and Istanbul, acquires low risk, ageing oilfields and applies world-class technical expertise to increase production and extend the life of these fields.

Contacts: Richard Forbes (Minister Vaile) 02 6277 7420 - Gregory Harvey (Austrade) 02 9390 2703