Hyundai Motor Co., South Korea’s largest carmaker, said Tuesday that its plant in Turkey rolled off its 1 millionth vehicle, a milestone in the company’s presence in the country and Europe.

The plant in the port city of Izmit, which has the capacity to produce 200,000 cars per year, has been in operation since 1997, with vehicles including the i10 and i20 supermini cars currently being made there.

Both cars are so-called strategic cars introduced by Hyundai Motor for the European market, whose consumers favor small economical vehicles with small-displacement powertrains.

Production was gradually increased from 60,000 to 100,000 in 2007, with the total being doubled last year after the carmaker injected $609 million to expand the plant’s capacity to meet growing demand. The expansion helped create 2,500 new jobs that benefited the regional economy. (Yonhap)