
Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır, while answering questions on the agenda in his live broadcast on CNBC-e, gave news of a new investment in the automotive sector.
Minister Kacır stated that another investment would follow the Chinese automotive giant BYD, which came first after 27 years of signing, and made the following statements:
“The agreement we signed at the beginning of the week was a new source of hope for all of us. As Türkiye, we are a very strong player. We are the third largest manufacturer in Europe. A total of 13 brands continue their production activities in Turkey. Recently, China has been on an undeniable rise at the global level. Electric vehicles held a significant share. China has become the world leader in investments in battery technologies. 40 million of the 25 million electric cars are in China. We shared how brands that have invested in Chinese manufacturers in Turkey in the past are increasing their capacity step by step. We have been in close contact with several brands. One of them was BYD. BYD is the world leader in this field. A brand that develops 32 patents every day. We very much wished BYD was in Turkey. We carried out intensive studies on which regions production can be carried out. "We finally signed the agreement on Monday."
TAX EXEMPTION FOR CHINESE MANUFACTURERS
“Imposing exceptions is not a new practice. It is a practice that has been carried out since the past. The main thing is to increase Turkey's competitiveness. Türkiye is an open economy. We do not witness investors coming only by targeting the Turkish market. It comes for export purposes. BYD announced not only a production investment but also an R&D center investment.”
RENAULT'S NEW GENERATION PLANS
Kacır regarding his meeting with Renault CEO, “The company has a production facility with a capacity of 360 thousand in Bursa. They have accelerated their investments in hybrid cars. We support all of their plans as a ministry. We are preparing to make further plans with them. Renault has valuable plans for the new generation. There is a tremendous transformation in all areas of technology. We are preparing 10-year plans, these are compatible with development plans. We want Türkiye to be predictable for investors.” dedicate.
“A COMPREHENSIVE STATEMENT ABOUT THE INCENTIVE OF BYD INVESTMENT WILL BE MADE NEXT WEEK”
It is a valuable instrument for investors to help Turkey take steps. We are talking about BYD direct employment of 5 thousand and indirect employment of 25 thousand. We will encourage such investments. We provide tailor-made support for each project. We will be sharing more comprehensive posts about BYD's investment incentives in the coming weeks. We offer facilities for finding investment locations through incentives. We also have reinforcements regarding employment-related tax practices. Renault has a plan to increase production levels at the existing factory. There are plans to produce new generation vehicle models in Turkey.
“WE WANT TO INCREASE TURKEY'S SHARE IN HYBRID AND ELECTRIC PRODUCTION”
We want to increase the share of hybrid and electric production in Turkey in the coming period. We want to reduce the share of internal combustion production step by step. We want to run faster on this road. We made a very important move in the spread of charging stations. Electric vehicle usage habits are increasing. All these show that Turkey is moving plannedly in green transformation. We will strive to ensure that other brands, such as BYD, accelerate their new technology investments.
NEW INVESTMENT ON THE WAY
I said that we have reached the final point with two brands in the last month. We signed one of them. There may be a possibility of signing with another one in the near future. No surprise. We will take steps to accelerate direct foreign investment. We are not a country that would agree to follow other countries.
“INCREASE OF ELECTRIC PRODUCTION IS IN FAVOR OF TOGG”
I refer to Togg as our national champion. The fact that it is naturally electric is the strongest argument we have. A job that proves how strongly Turkey believes in green transformation. Some people said that these vehicles are being introduced but there is no factory. They said the factory construction was completed. More than 33 thousand vehicles are now on the roads. Togg will continue competitively. If we can sell Togg abroad, we can talk about sustainable success. Togg has no intention of running away from the competition. The arrival of a new company to Turkey would not be a cause for concern for Togg.