While many places “roll out the red carpet” to welcome Chinese electric cars, this country is about to impose high taxes to “clear the way” for domestic electric cars.

Tram Ho

Turkey recently said it would raise tariffs on electric cars imported from China as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government prepares to market the country’s first domestically produced electric vehicle.

Specifically, Turkey will impose an additional customs duty of 40% on electric vehicles made in China. Turkey’s electric car project, TOGG, is a key campaign pledge by Mr. Erdogan as he prepares for elections scheduled for May. The first model is a segment SUV. C, was launched in October last year and will be delivered to customers in the third quarter of this year.

The government promotes the project by supporting tax cuts, free land, lower loan interest rates, and offering insurance for 30,000 cars a year until the end of 2035.

Turkey has promoted electric vehicles by imposing lower taxes than internal combustion engine vehicles. As a result, sales of electric cars in Turkey have tripled, reaching 7,733 units by 2022. However, this figure accounts for just over 1% of the European nation’s commercial vehicle market share.

The growth potential in green vehicles has attracted the attention of Chinese manufacturers. Last week, Chinese electric vehicle giant BYD signed a memorandum of understanding with Turkish distributor ALJ Turkiye to enter the market with passenger and light commercial vehicles.

Regarding the Turkish electric vehicle project, this is a product of the Turkish Automobile Joint Venture Group (TOGG), which was established in 2018.

TOGG plans to sell the first electric car under its name for 900,000 Turkish lira (equivalent to 50,000 euros) and this is a price that is not “affordable” for the majority of Turkish people. However, price is not the only obstacle, Turkey currently does not have the necessary service infrastructure for vehicle owners.

Trong khi nhiều nơi 'trải thảm đỏ' đón xe điện Trung Quốc thì quốc gia này sắp áp thuế cao ngất để 'dọn đường' cho xe điện nội địa - Ảnh 1.

Photo: Inside EV

Husamettin Yalçin, General Director of Automotive Data, said: “Turkey’s infrastructure is not ready for the transition to green cars. People will have to worry if there are enough charging stations on the road from Ankara to Istanbul.”

The TOGG brand representative also announced that it will not sell cars through dealers as is currently done by most other brands. Instead, customers interested and wishing to order can order through a mobile application called TOGG Care.

Although TOGG vehicles are designed and assembled in Turkey, parts such as batteries, motors and some electrical systems have to be imported.

Currently, TOGG vehicles are designed for the Turkish market, there are no plans to enter foreign markets. An industry source said that if TOGG succeeds in using 70% of domestically produced components, the electric vehicle will be able to compete internationally.

Reference: Bloomberg

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Source : Genk