Volkswagen to Establish Production Unit in Turkey to Make Passat and Superb

Volkswagen has announced that the company will be setting up a new production plant in Turkey to make the new Volkswagen Passat and Skoda Superb. The pant is expected to become operational in 2022, and will cater to customers in Eastern Europe and the Middle East. It would also serve as an export hub for markets like Russia. According to a report in Automotive News Europe, the plant is expected to achieve production of 300,000 units on an annual basis once it starts production.

The new factory will be located in Manisa, which is on the west coast of Turkey and is 40 kilometers north-east of Izmir. According to the report, Volkswagen opted to establish the new plant in Turkey based on the country’s location in relation to growth markets and its “positive macroeconomic conditions”.

A Volkswagen spokesperson did confirm that the company is in the “final stages of negotiations”.

According to the report, two thirds of the 300,000-unit annual output will be allocated to the next-generation Passat mid-sizer. This model is currently assembled in Embden, Germany and this factory is likely to be retooled for the production of electric vehicles. Once the production of the new Superb is shifted to the Turkish factory, Skoda will be able to free up capacity at its Kvasiny plant in the Czech Republic.

According to the experts cited in the Automotive News Europe report, Volkswagen will b eable to save costs by manufacturing vehicles in turkey while meeting the strong demand for the Passat in the region in view of stagnation in sales and currency fluctuations in the region.

The plant will also be a part of the company’s new Turkish division, which has been named ‘Volkswagen Turkey Otomotiv Sanayi ve Ticaret AS’.

With the Manisa factory becoming operational, Volkswagen’s manufacturing footprint across the globe will increase to 123.