China’s
biggest
electric
car
maker
BYD
has
agreed
a
$1bn
(£780m)
deal
to
set
up
a
manufacturing
plant
in
Turkey,
as
it
continues
to
expand
outside
its
home
country.
The
new
plant
will
be
able
to
produce
up
to
150,000
vehicles
a
year,
according
to
Turkish
state
news
agency
Anadolu.
The
facility
is
expected
to
create
around
5,000
jobs
and
start
production
by
the
end
of
2026.
The
deal
was
signed
at
an
event
in
Istanbul
attended
by
President
Recep
Tayyip
Erdogan
and
BYD’s
chief
executive
Wang
Chuanfu.
BYD
did
not
immediately
respond
to
a
BBC
request
for
further
details
on
the
deal.
The
announcement
comes
as
Chinese
EV
makers
face
increasing
pressure
in
the
European
Union
and
the
US.
Last
week,
the
EU
took
action
to
protect
the
bloc’s
motor
industry
by
raising
tariffs
on
Chinese
EVs.
The
decision
saw
BYD
hit
with
an
extra
tariff
of
17.4%
on
the
vehicles
it
ships
from
China
to
the
EU,
which
was
on
top
of
a
10%
import
duty.
Turkey
is
part
of
the
EU’s
Customs
Union,
which
means
vehicles
made
in
the
country
and
exported
to
the
bloc
can
avoid
the
additional
tariff.
The
Turkish
government
has
also
taken
action
to
support
the
country’s
car
makers
by
putting
an
extra
40%
tariff
on
imports
of
Chinese
vehicles.
In
May,
US
President
Joe
Biden
ramped
up
tariffs
on
Chinese-made
electric
cars,
solar
panels,
steel
and
other
goods.
The
White
House
said
the
measures,
which
include
a
100%
border
tax
on
electric
cars
from
China,
were
a
response
to
unfair
policies
and
intended
to
protect
US
jobs.
BYD,
which
is
backed
by
veteran
US
investor
Warren
Buffett,
is
the
world’s
second-largest
EV
company
after
Elon
Musk’s
Tesla.
The
company
has
been
rapidly
expanding
its
production
facilities
outside
China.
At
the
end
of
last
year,
BYD
announced
that
it
would
build
a
manufacturing
plant
in
EU
member
state
Hungary.
It
will
be
the
firm’s
first
passenger
car
factory
in
Europe
and
is
expected
to
create
thousands
of
jobs.
On
Thursday,
BYD
opened
an
EV
plant
in
Thailand
–
its
first
factory
in
South
East
Asia.
BYD
said
the
plant
will
have
an
annual
capacity
of
150,000
vehicles
and
is
projected
to
generate
10,000
jobs.
The
company
has
also
said
it
is
planning
to
build
a
manufacturing
plant
in
Mexico.
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