Flanders expects to receive an invitation to tender (ITT) from the car manufacturer Tesla “later this year.” It is looking for a European region in which to locate one of its car plants. This results from a recent meeting between the American company and Flanders Investment and Trade (FIT). This was indicated today by the Flemish Minister President, Geert Bourgeois (of the New Flemish Alliance). He acknowledges, competition is “enormous”.
In September 2015, the electric car manufacturer had indicated that it was not ruling out eventually opening a production site in Flanders.
The CEO, Elon Musk, had indicated back then, after a meeting with the Flemish government, “There is still significant available capacity in our in our California factory but, eventually, we envisage launching a local production unit in Europe. That being so, Flanders is certainly in the Top Five potential sites.”
FIT has since continued to communicate with Tesla, which is expected to issue an ITT to several regions this year. FIT stresses, “The good news is that Flanders is still in the running, but the region will be competing against other regions looking to take the chequered flag!”
Mr Bourgeois says, Flanders will put forward its advantages to ensure that it has every chance of winning, but the competition is enormous. Also competing for a Tesla brand manufacturing plant are Spain, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Germany and Austria.
The Brussels Times
