The VW Group will build the next-generation Volkswagen Passat (shown) and Škoda Superb cars at a new plant in Turkey.
The factory will be located in Manisa, 40 km northeast of Izmir on Turkey’s West coast. With an annual production capacity of 300,000 vehicles, job one is scheduled for 2022.
VW picked Turkey for the factory because of what they call “positive macroeconomic conditions” including an 80-million-strong population that rivals Germany’s in size and its location amid growth markets, according to the company document.
The plant will cater for the domestic market and serve as an export hub for the Middle East and Eastern Europe including Russia. The VW brand will operate the factory, and about two-thirds of the 300,000 production volume will be for the Passat.
The factory will allow VW to move Passat production from Emden, Germany, and turn Emden into a factory building only electric cars. It will also give Škoda much-needed extra capacity at the plant in Kvasiny, where they build the Superb.
