Tycoon shies away from car production bid
ISTANBUL
Özilhan says his group will not establish a standalone automotive company.
It is not possible for Anadolu Group to undertake the government’s call, initially voiced by the Prime Minister Tayyip Erdoğan, for producing a domestic automobile, according to a top executive.“It is an expensive and hard job to create a new brand in automobiles. You can manufacture a domestic automobile, but I am not sure whether you can be successful under a Turkish brand,” said Tuncay Özilhan, the executive board president of the group. Özilhan added that it takes a $2 billion investment per year in order to compete in global markets, according to daily Milliyet.
The automotive industry requires large amounts of investments, as it is a capital-intensive industry, Özilhan said. “You have to spend $2 billion per year in order to compete, because automobiles go out of date. You need to develop [new] models and technology.” Anadolu Group can contribute to the project, but would not establish an automotive firm alone, he said. k HDN
