Baykar’s Drone Plant in Kyiv to Produce 120 Drones Annually

Turkish company Baykar has confirmed that its newly-established plant in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, is slated to produce 120 drones annually.

Haluk Bayraktar, the CEO of Baykar, announced the ongoing construction of a drone manufacturing facility in the Kyiv region during the World Defense Show (WDS) exhibition (Feb. 4-8) in Riyadh. The plant is expected to be completed within approximately 12 months.

Bayraktar disclosed that the plant is projected to employ around 500 individuals upon completion. While the facility is anticipated to have an annual production capacity of about 120 drones, Bayraktar did not specify whether the focus would be on the TB2 or TB3 drone models.

This development follows a September report revealing Baykar's $100 million investment in three projects in Ukraine, indicating a deepening collaboration between the two nations in the defense industry.

In July of this year, the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine inked an agreement with Baykar to establish a service center for drone repair and maintenance within the country. This agreement builds upon a broader collaboration between the governments of Ukraine and Turkey, centering on high-tech, aviation, and space industries, initially forged in February of the previous year.

Moreover, a memorandum signed in 2021 outlined plans for the construction of a joint training and testing center for drone operations. By February 2023, the Ministry of Defense finalized the agreement on the center's development site, emphasizing its role in the maintenance, repair, and modernization of equipment. The center is also slated to serve as a hub for personnel training related to drone operations by Baykar, involving the transfer of the company's technologies and the localization of part of the production.