ISTANBUL, Sept 20 (Askume) – Turkey’s trade ministry has imposed strict conditions on imports of plug-in hybrid vehicles from some countries including China, according to a notice published in the official gazette on Friday.
The move follows the decision to ban the import of electric vehicles in June .
China’s auto exports have faced widespread criticism, with many countries claiming they are heavily subsidized by Beijing.
Analysts say Ankara also wants to increase pressure on Chinese automakers, with whom Turkey is in talks to invest in production in Türkiye.
The notice, which will take effect within 30 days, stipulates that importers must meet additional conditions, including having 20 authorized repair shops in seven different regions of Turkey, to import hybrid vehicles produced outside the EU or in countries where Turkey already produces them under trade agreements.
Analysts said no importers qualified.
“From now on, all plug-in hybrid cars will be blocked except for those already in stock,” said Erol Sahin, founder of consultancy EBS Duchmanlik.
He said the government was sending a “hurry up” message to Chinese companies with whom it was in talks for domestic production.
In July, China’s BYD (002594.SZ) and the Turkish governmentAn agreement was reached to spend US$1 billion to build a factory in Turkey with an annual production capacity of 150,000 vehicles .
Turkish sources said last week that BYD’s investment process in Turkey continued without any problems after China warned the company about the risks of foreign investment .
China’s Chery and SAIC are also in talks .
Data released this week showed that European sales of pure electric cars are falling faster than those of hybrid cars.
In the first eight months of this year, Turkiye’s domestic car and light vehicle market sales were 762,000 units, the same as last year. Industry data shows that Chinese brand imports more than doubled to 63,000 vehicles, accounting for 8% of the market.
