Turkish automaker Tofaş on Monday launched production of a new line of light commercial vehicles in the northwestern automotive hub of Bursa.
The $300 million K9 project is a joint investment by Koç Holding, Türkiye's largest conglomerate, and Stellantis, the global automaker that owns the Fiat, Peugeot, Citroen and Opel brands.
Industry and Technology Minister Mehmet Fatih Kacır said the K9 project will add 100,000 vehicles of annual production capacity at Tofaş, a long-running venture between Koç and Stellantis, and create 1,000 jobs.
It will also create new business for nearly 100 domestic suppliers, Kacır told the launch ceremony in Bursa.
The line is built on a multi-energy platform, which gives Tofaş production flexibility and could pave the way for electric light commercial vehicles to be built in Bursa, he said.
Production covers models for Citroen, Fiat, Opel and Peugeot under a strategic agreement Stellantis and Tofaş signed in September 2025.
About 20% of K9 output will be exported, Tofaş CEO Cengiz Eroldu said. The plant recently raised its capacity to 500,000 vehicles a year.
Samir Cherfan, Stellantis' Middle East and Africa operations director, said the project covers five models: the Fiat Doblo, Citroen Berlingo, Opel Combo, and Peugeot Rifter and Partner.
He said the platform is also ready for electric light commercial vehicles.
Eroldu noted that the Fiat Doblo and Opel Combo, produced at the plant from 2000 to 2023, are returning to Bursa under the project. Cherfan said more than 600,000 customers bought the Doblo in that period.
Ömer Koç, chair of Koç Holding, said the K9 follows the K0 model, which began production last year.
He said Koç and Stellantis had invested $1 billion in Tofaş over the past five years, half of it in research and development. K9 production is eventually targeted at 150,000 vehicles a year, he said.
Koç said the model will strengthen Türkiye's leadership in commercial vehicle production in Europe. Tofaş aims to use its capacity fully, offer customers more domestically made models and contribute to the current account balance, he said.
Talks with Stellantis on other new models are continuing, he added.
Tofaş has produced 7.5 million vehicles over half a century, according to Koç. Stellantis handed management of all its Turkish operations to Tofaş as of 2025, a move Koç called a strong sign of both partners' confidence.
Kacır said Türkiye's annual goods exports have risen to $283 billion from $36 billion in 2002, and that the automotive industry exported $41.5 billion last year, a record.
He said about 60% of foreign direct investment into Türkiye since 2002 has come from the European Union. Türkiye produced 1.5 million motor vehicles last year, nearly 80% of them at plants run by leading EU automakers, directly or in local partnerships, he said.
He added that 64% of the auto parts industry's exports go to EU countries, and 56% of auto parts imports come from the bloc.
"The way for Europe to build economies of scale is to increase cooperation with Türkiye, a fast-growing country of 86 million people," Kacır said. He said Europe's economy has grown 1.4% a year since 2002, against 5.3% for Türkiye, and that annual car sales in Türkiye have risen from about 300,000 in the early 2000s to 1.5 million.
