Turkey plans to invest billions in EV and battery production
As reported by Reuters, the 5 billion dollar package should boost EV production in the country to an annual output of one million units.
In total, Erdogan announced incentives for promising tech sectors totalling 30 billion dollars (27.6 billion euros).
The Turkish president emphasised that his country had paved the way for investments by electric car manufacturers, demonstrated in particular by BYD’s commitment to build a production plant worth one billion dollars in Turkey. BYD and the Turkish government signed an agreement to this effect at the beginning of July. The plant is expected to have an annual capacity of 150,000 vehicles and will go into operation at the end of 2026. It is the second BYD factory focussing on Europe after Hungary.
According to Erdogan, Turkey is set to become an important player in the electric mobility sector in the long run. That also includes the development of a battery industry, which the government wants to help with an additional 4.5 billion dollar package. “With our call for batteries, we aim to become a regional production base by building a capacity of 80 gigawatt hours by 2030,” the Turkish president is quoted as saying by Reuters.
Other investments include solar cells, chips and wind energy. However, electric cars and batteries account for almost a third of the total investment. According to reports, the 30 billion dollars in state aid is expected to attract at least 20 billion dollars in private capital. Further details will be announced shortly.
Turkey has long been a favourite production location for car manufacturers producing vehicles for the European market. That is because Turkey and the EU have been linked by a customs union that has existed since 1995, while local production costs are relatively low. In addition to BYD, Fiat, Renault, Ford, Toyota, and Hyundai, for example, also see this as a strategic location advantage. Some of them have been producing in Turkey for decades.
In the electric mobility sector, Turkey has made a name for itself with Togg, a Turkish EV maker founded a few years ago. The OEM’s debut electric car has only been sold in Turkey. However, the second planned market is Germany in the autumn.
0 Comments