Kırıkkale Province

Kırıkkale Province (Turkish: Kırıkkale ili) is a province of Turkey. It is located on the crossroads of major highways east of Ankara leading east to the Black Sea region. Its area is 4,791 km²,^[2] and its population is 277,046 (2022).^[1] With its rapid population growth it has become an industrial center. The province was established in 1989 from part of Ankara Province.^[3] The provincial capital is Kırıkkale.^[4]

Kırıkkale Province Kırıkkale ili
Province
Çeşnigir Bridge
Location of the province within Turkey
Country	Turkey
Seat	Kırıkkale
Government
• Governor	Mehmet Makas
Area	4,791 km2 (1,850 sq mi)
Population  (2022)[1]	277,046
• Density	58/km2 (150/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+3 (TRT)
Area code	0318
Website	www.kirikkale.gov.tr

Kırıkkale is a rapidly growing town in central Turkey, on the Ankara-Kayseri railway near the Kızılırmak River. Formerly a village, it owes its rapid rise in population mainly to the establishment of steel mills in the 1950s. These works, among the largest in the country, specialize in high-quality alloy steel and machinery. In the 1960s chemical plants were added.^{[verification needed]}