Turkish President Erdogan has invited Elon Musk to build his next Tesla factory in Turkey.
Erdogan met with Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk in New York on Sunday while in the country for the United Nations General Assembly. The two met at Manhattan’s Turkish House.
“Recalling that with the Turkish electric car Togg hitting the roads in Türkiye, Tesla entered the Turkish market, Erdogan called on Tesla to establish its seventh factory in Türkiye,” Turkish state news agency Anadolu reported, citing the country’s communications directorate.
Erdogan also offered Musk collaboration prospects with SpaceX and Turkey’s space program, and invited Musk to Teknofest, Turkey’s largest aviation, aerospace, and technology festival, which will take place this year between late September and the end of October.
According to Anadolu, Musk said that a number of Turkish suppliers are already working with Tesla and that Turkey “is among the most important candidates” for his future factory.
Tesla presently operates six facilities and is constructing a seventh in Mexico. Musk stated in May that he would most likely choose a location for a new manufacturing before the end of the year. He is said to have previously engaged with Indian government officials about establishing a low-cost electric vehicle manufacturing factory in India.
Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment from CNBC. The stock price of the corporation is up 123% year to date.
Erdogan and Musk are also said to have talked about working together on artificial intelligence and Starlink, SpaceX’s satellite broadband service. Musk has indicated interest in securing the requisite Turkish government licensing to operate Starlink in the 85 million-person country.
In recent decades, Turkey has established itself as a significant manufacturing centre at the crossroads of Europe and Asia.
According to the US Department of Commerce, manufacturing as a share of Turkey’s GDP increased to around 19% between 2012 and 2022, and the country plans to expand that to 21% by the end of this year as part of its 2023 Industry and Technology Strategy. Its strategy also involves government assistance for entrepreneurs, enhanced intellectual property regulations, and significant investment in STEM education and technology firms.
According to the department, 36% of Turkey’s industrial exports are medium-tech products, while 3% are high-tech products. Turkey intends to boost the proportion of medium-tech exports to 44% and high-tech exports to 6% by the end of 2023.
In recent years, Turkey has made its imprint in defense technology in particular. In 2022, Turkey’s arms exports reached a record high of $4.4 billion, exceeding the annual defense expenditures of several European nations. The government intends to increase this amount to $6 billion by 2023.
According to Turkey’s Presidency of Defense Industries, the defense industry as a whole generated $10 billion in revenue last year, and the country is home to approximately 2,000 enterprises in the sector. Its Bayraktar TB2 drone acquired notoriety after Ukrainian forces employed it against invading Russian troops.
Erdogan reportedly brought up the success of the drone during his conversation with Musk, to which Musk responded that he was aware of the drone’s international notoriety.
