Sept 18, 2023. Posted by Balkan Periscope - Hellas
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan asked Tesla (TSLA.O) CEO Elon
Musk to build a Tesla factory in Turkey, the country's communications
directorate said on Monday.
It cited Musk as saying that many Turkish suppliers are already working with Tesla and that Turkey was among the most important candidates for its next factory.
Tesla did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Erdogan and Musk were speaking during a meeting at Turkish House, a
skyscraper near the United Nations in New York, Turkey's state-owned Anadolu
news agency reported.
Erdogan also said during the meeting that Turkey was open to cooperation on
artificial intelligence and Starlink, the satellite internet venture of Musk's
SpaceX, the communications directorate said.
It cited Musk as saying SpaceX wished to work with Turkish authorities to
obtain the necessary licence to offer Starlink satellite services in Turkey.
It also said Erdogan invited Musk to attend Turkish aerospace and
technology festival Teknofest in Smyrna at the end of September and cited Musk
as saying he would gladly attend.
Musk is also set to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in
California on Monday. Musk posted on social media platform X that their talks
would focus on artificial intelligence technology.
Tesla in August expressed an interest in building a factory in India that
would produce a low-cost electric vehicle.
Tesla currently has six factories and is building a seventh in Mexico in
northern Nuevo Leon state, part of the automaker's push to expand its global
footprint.
Musk said in May that Tesla would probably pick a location for a new
factory by the end of this year.
Tesla shares are up 123% so far this year and the automaker on Saturday
said it had produced its 5 millionth car.
In addition to running Tesla, Musk also bought X, formerly known as
Twitter, for $44 billion in 2022.
While describing himself as a free speech absolutist, Musk has complied
with some demands by the Turkish government to censor content in the country.
In other cases, the social media company has objected to orders by the
Turkish courts.
Reuters