Kıvanç Zaimler becomes the new CEO of Sabancı

Sabancı Holding has undergone a change in leadership at the CEO level. Kıvanç Zaimler, who has held various positions at Sabancı Holding since 2008 and has served as the Sabancı Holding Energy Group President for approximately 7 years, has been appointed as the Sabancı Holding CEO effective June 1.

Commenting on the matter, Sabancı Holding Chairman of the Board Hayri Çulhacı said, “As we celebrate the 100th anniversary of our group with great pride, we are moving confidently toward the future in line with our strategy and vision. Our greatest advantages on this journey are our deep industry knowledge and experience, our operational excellence, our expert staff, and our ability to embrace change with great skill. These elements, which define our business culture and ways of doing business, have always been the primary priority for all leaders and management teams serving at Sabancı. This strong vision also necessitates a constant need for renewal in operational and organizational terms. Cenk Alper, who has worked in various roles within the Sabancı Group for 29 years and has successfully led our Group as Holding CEO for the last 6 years, will leave his position as of May 31. On behalf of myself and our Board of Directors, I would like to thank Mr. Cenk and wish him success in his future life.”

Emphasizing that the most fundamental competence that ensures the continuity of institutions is the ability to cultivate leaders from within, Hayri Çulhacı made the following statements:

“The Sabancı Group, which has pioneered the business world in cultivating its own leaders in past years, is once again demonstrating this exemplary stance today. In this context, Kıvanç Zaimler, who has undertaken various leadership roles in our Group for 17 years and has served as Energy Group President since 2018, has been appointed as the new CEO of Sabancı Holding as of June 1. Kıvanç Zaimler, who played a major role in our energy business line, established in 2006, becoming one of our largest business lines, has made significant contributions to the growth, institutionalization, and international expansion of our energy operations; with his experience in these areas, he has successfully represented our Group and our country on an international scale. Our management team under the leadership of Mr. Kıvanç will focus on creating value for our stakeholders with our operations in different business lines, while also undertaking important work in preparing our portfolio for the future. On this occasion, I wish this change of leadership to be beneficial to our Group.”

WHO IS KIVANÇ ZAİMLER?

Kıvanç Zaimler, who has served in the Sabancı Group for many years, has been appointed as the CEO of Sabancı Holding as of June 1, 2025.

Kıvanç Zaimler, who served as the Sabancı Holding Energy Group President between 2018 and 2025, assumed the role of Chairman of the Board for Enerjisa Enerji and Enerjisa Üretim, as well as Sabancı Climate Technologies, which manages Sabancı's US-based renewable energy and climate technology investments. Recently serving as the Chairman of the Board of Temsa, an affiliate of the Sabancı Group in the automotive sector, Zaimler led the implementation of energy and technology-focused growth strategies in both Turkey and international markets throughout these roles.

Kıvanç Zaimler held senior positions in trade, distribution, and retail at Enerjisa, which he joined in 2008, and led the company's IPO process as CEO between 2016 and 2018.

Zaimler contributed to the transformation process of SabancıDx as Chairman of the Board; he also held active roles at the board level at Aksigorta and Agesa.

Before joining the Sabancı Group, Zaimler worked as a manager in different sectors and began his business life in 1992. A graduate of Istanbul High School and ITU Industrial Engineering, Zaimler continued his education at the Technical University of Berlin.

Zaimler, who also holds active roles in non-governmental organizations and international platforms, has held important positions such as Vice President of the World Energy Council Turkey, Board Member of IICEC (Istanbul International Center for Energy and Climate), Advisory Board Member of the SHURA Energy Transition Center, President of ELDER (Association of Electricity Distribution Services), and President of the TÜSİAD Energy Roundtable. He currently plays an active role representing Turkey and the Sabancı Group on global platforms such as the COP Climate Summits and the World Economic Forum (WEF).