Tofas and Arcelik to develop electric engine for Doblo van

Jul 27, 2010 (Datamonitor via COMTEX) -- Tofas Turk Otomobil Fabrikasi, or Tofas, a Turkey-based automotive company, will partner with Arcelik, a Turkish household appliances manufacturer, to develop an electric engine for the Doblo van, which could be ready for production by mid-2011, the Reuters revealed.

Tofas, founded as a Turkish-Italian partnership between Koc Holding and Fiat Auto, plans to sell the car in European markets and export it to the US as well. Koc and Fiat each hold a 38% share in Tofas, while Koc also holds 40% of Arcelik.

An estimated E5-10 million investment could be required for the annual production of 500 to 1,000 vehicles, depending on demand from Europe. The cost of the Doblo prototype is set around $26 million.

Ali Pandir, CEO of Tofas, was quoted by the source as saying: "Because we are the base for light commercial vehicle production and research and development, Fiat assigned the electrification of these vehicles to us. We will develop the electric engine together with Arcelik. Arcelik have know-how on the subject of electric engines and we have vehicle technology."

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