Turkey wants to be the location for Tesla’s next electric vehicle factory despite creating its own EV brand
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by Brad Anderson
September 18, 2023 at 10:05
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The president of Turkey has asked Tesla chief executive Elon Musk to build an EV factory in the country. Whether or not this will actually happen remains to be seen as there are plenty of other countries clamoring to be home to new Tesla factories, including India.
Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, recently met with Elon Musk at Turkish House near the United Nations’ location in New York. Erdogan is in the United States while attending the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly. Other than Erdogan’s factory request to Musk, it is unclear what else the two spoke about.
Read: President Erdogan Takes Delivery Of Turkey’s First Togg T10X Electric SUV
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Reuters notes that the world’s largest electric car manufacturer currently has six factories dotted around the world and has committed to building its next site in the northern Mexican state of Nuevo Leon. In May, Musk added that the company was going to select a location for its next factory by the end of this year. India is reportedly in the best position to be selected to host this new factory.
Tesla had initially planned to export its EVs to India but after local officials declined its request to have import tariffs waived, has instead started to discuss the possibility of building an EV factory in India. This location could be tasked with building the brand’s long-awaited $25,000 EV.
Turkey’s interest in encouraging Tesla to expand its footprint in the country comes as somewhat of a surprise given its establishment of Togg, the nation’s first homegrown EV maker. The carmaker started production and deliveries of the T10X SUV earlier this year and it appears to be quite popular among locals, so much so that reports that more than 177,400 pre-orders were placed in the first 21 days of it being available.
