State to have ‘golden share’ in local autos

ISTANBUL - Anatolia News Agency

The state can get involved in local car manufacturing with a ‘golden share’ to encourage the sector, says Turkish Economy Minister Çağlayan. AA photo

The state could participate in a local car manufacturing project with a “golden share” – also called a “silent share” – in order to encourage the sector and investors, Turkey’s Economy Minister Zafer Çağlayan said yesterday during a conference in which he underlined the government’s determination to manufacture a local car in Turkey.

“We are determinant to make it [a local car]. If it is necessary, we, as the state, will get involved in it with silent share or golden share in order to encourage the sector and the investors as many countries do in the world,” said Çağlayan, speaking at the inauguration session of the fifth Automotive Congress organized by the Authorized Automotive Dealers’ Association (OYDER) in Istanbul. However, the details were not yet clear, he added.

“I’m declaring for the first time that we are ready to talk about special incentives if an investor decides to manufacture a local car,” said the minister, adding that the government was determined to achieve this outcome. Çağlayan pointed out that they were willing to negotiate on all incentive models with investors that were able to manufacture a local car which would be unrivaled in the world. He noted that the investors could be local or foreign.

Sub-industry able to manufacture car

“I am proud of our sub-industry, which has enough capabilities, power and opportunities to manufacture 85 percent of an automobile,” said Çağlayan.

Çağlayan stated that a local car would reduce Turkey’s dependence on abroad. The Turkish automotive sector is dependent on obtaining licenses from the main manufacturer companies, any player in the sector cannot make investments without these companies’ approval, he said. Çağlayan also recalled the Volkswagen example, which is expected to decide between Poland and Turkey to invest in soon. “Turkey is more advantageous than Poland,” he said.