Turkey to invest $3.7 billion in first indigenous car

DÜZCE - Anadolu Agency

Turkey will invest in 3.2 billion euros ($3.7 billion) for its first domestically-produced car, Science, Industry and Technology Minister Faruk Özlü stated on June 8.

“The basic parameters of the project have been shaped. We will invest 3.2 billion euros. There will be a facility that has a capacity of producing 200,000 cars. There were five models of cars. As we thought since the beginning, the car will be electric one,” Özlü said in an interview with the TGRT Haber broadcaster.

He predicted that the project will have a contribution of around 50 billion euros ($58.8 billion) to the gross national product in the long term.

“Within this project, we will provide directly 4,000 and indirectly 20,000 jobs,” Özlü added.

The minister also said they will be aimed at middle and upper classes.

“We are mostly thinking of a car in segments B and C. It will be cheaper than peers. We aim it to be at least five percent cheaper than its peers. We aim to produce a car that will be more qualified than its peers,” he added.

Last November, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced that the prototype of the first domestically produced car - expected to be produced in Ankara - would be ready in 2019 and enter the market in 2021.

“The place is not certain yet. Our aim is to unveil the prototype of the domestic car in 2019 and we want to present it for sale in 2021,” Özlü said.

A partnership agreement to create the country’s first indigenous car brand was signed on May 31.

The manufacturing company was named Turkey’s Automobile Initiative Group. Five local firms - Anadolu Group, BMC, Kok Group, Turkcell, and Zorlu Holding with 19 percent of shares each - and the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB) with 5 percent of shares will jointly lead the firm.