The Turkish company Baykar plans to invest $100 million in three projects in Ukraine. Baykar CEO Haluk Bayraktar announced this on Friday at the International Defense Industries Forum in Kyiv, Ukrinform reports.
Türkiye joined the drone development and production in Ukraine. Baykar, the manufacturer of Bayraktar TB2 attack drones, plans to invest $100 million in three projects, which include a factory, a service center, and a head office.
According to Baykar CEO Haluk Bayraktar, the construction, which will take about 1.5 years to complete, has already started.
“We plan to employ at least 300 people here. Cooperation continues,” Bayraktar said.
He highlighted that the production would be self-sufficient, ecological, and mutually beneficial since Ukraine has unique engine technologies, and the Turkish company produces drones on which the engines are installed.
“We also face some challenges,” Baykar’s CEO added. “These are the supply chain, finding human capital due to the impact of the war and developing regulations that will support these investments.”
Bayraktar noted that the current war had become a war of drones. Ukraine has some advantages because it uses various types of vehicles.
He added that feedback from the Ukrainian military on using the Baykar technology is especially important. Based on soldiers’ responses, the Bayraktar drones used in Ukraine were equipped with several unique systems.
The defense company’s CEO also recalled the fundraising campaigns initiated by volunteers in Ukraine, Poland, and Lithuania to purchase Bayraktar drones for the Ukrainian army. Impressed by people’s united resilience, Baykar donated drones to Ukraine instead of accepting the payment. All donations raised in the campaigns were used, in particular, to purchase radar systems that have already detected thousands of targets and brought significant results on the battlefield.
“These donations amounted to $106 million,” Bayraktar reported.