(ANSAmed) - ANKARA, JANUARY 17 - Sergio Marchionne, the CEO
of Italian carmaker Fiat Auto SpA, said the company was planning
production of a Turkish-made car at the Bursa plant, according
to reports from Turkish media. The Vatan daily newspaper
reported Marchionne as saying at the North American
International Auto Show that progress had been made on the issue
in talks with Turkish prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The
leader has been pushing lately for a fully Turkish-made car. The
newspaper added that the new model would be based on the Fiat
Albea, which is being discontinued in other countries, and will
be destined only for the local market. The Albea is made in
Turkey by the Tofas joint venture of Fiat and Turkish industrial
conglomerate Koc Holding. Tofas is jointly owned by Fiat and Koc
Holding (37.8% of the company's shares belong to Fiat Group
Automobiles, 37.8% to KoC Holding and 24.3% to others).
According to Tofas CEO Ali Pandir, Fiat would provide the technological infrastructure for the vehicle. Estimated initial production will be 200,000 units a year. Tofas currently makes several Fiat models under license, including the Palio, Albea, Doblo, Linea and Qubo. It also builds the Fiorino and its derivatives: the Peugeot Bipper, Citroen Nemo and Opel Combo.
(ANSAmed).
According to Tofas CEO Ali Pandir, Fiat would provide the technological infrastructure for the vehicle. Estimated initial production will be 200,000 units a year. Tofas currently makes several Fiat models under license, including the Palio, Albea, Doblo, Linea and Qubo. It also builds the Fiorino and its derivatives: the Peugeot Bipper, Citroen Nemo and Opel Combo.
(ANSAmed).
