Istanbul, Turkey – China’s electric vehicle manufacturer BYD has announced plans to invest $1 billion in building a new car factory in Turkey. This move comes amidst the company’s competition with Tesla for dominance in the global market for battery electric vehicles. The agreement was signed by BYD CEO Wang Chuanfu and Turkish Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kaci in Istanbul, with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in attendance.
According to the Turkish Ministry’s statement, the goal of the new factory is to meet the growing demand for new-energy vehicles in the region and reach European consumers. This decision comes shortly after the European Union imposed provisional additional duties on imports of Chinese-made electric vehicles. The tariffs range from 17.4% to 37.6% and aim to curb the influx of inexpensive Chinese cars that benefit from what the EU considers unfair government support.
With Turkey being in a customs union with the EU, vehicles produced in the country can be exported to the trading bloc without incurring tariffs. As part of the agreement, BYD will invest $1 billion in the new factory, which will have the capacity to manufacture 150,000 electric and hybrid vehicles annually. Additionally, a research and development center for sustainable mobility technologies will be established at the plant.
Production at the factory is projected to commence by the end of 2026, creating up to 5,000 jobs in Turkey. Talks between the EU and China are ongoing, with the possibility of reaching an agreement to avoid definitive implementation of additional tariffs in November. BYD’s decision to build a factory in Turkey follows its earlier announcement of constructing an electric vehicle plant in Hungary, establishing itself as the first major Chinese automaker to manufacture passenger cars in Europe.