The Director of the Agency for Foreign Investments, Visar Fida, in April 2013 in Ankara announced that three Turkish companies were to invest in Macedonia in the field of medicine. One of them was Total.
From Turkey, Fida announced that Total planned to invest about 15 million euros and employ about 250 people in the industrial zone Bunardzik, similarly to the other two companies.
“We believe that in a short amount of time we will deliver the investment in Macedonia and achieve great success," said the CEO of Total for the Macedonian news agency MIA.
In the election programme of VMRO-DPMNE from 2016, entitled "Real" as well as that of two years earlier, there is no information that the planned investment of Turkish Total has been realised, nor had media published any news on it in 2013.
The Agency for Foreign Investments told BIRN that companies Matek and Total had merged in a company titled as ISTEM Medikal, which had secured construction land in the Technological Industrial Development Zone in Skopje.
"Due to the crisis situation in Turkey, the investment has been delayed for a year. Owners expect to start with the realisation of the investment in Macedonia in 2017, " stated the Agency.
In the initial announcement, the three companies were presented as separate investors.