Chinese car battery manufacturers Hailiang and Shinzoom will set up two separate plants in Morocco as the country seeks to adapt its growing automotive sector to increasing demand for electric vehicles (EVs), Moroccan officials said on Tuesday.
Authorities in charge of developing the Moroccan northern industrial zone, Tanger Tech, said Hailiang plans to build a copper plant worth $450m (about R8,260,920,000) on an area of 30 hectares.
Shinzoom, part of Hunan Zhongke, will invest $460m (about R8,444,496,000) in an anodes plant spanning more than 20 hectares, they said.
Last month the Moroccan government gave the green light for Chinese electric battery maker BTR New Material Group to build a factory near Tangier to produce key component cathodes.
Another Chinese manufacturer, CNGR Advanced Material, is expected to build a cathode plant in Jorf Lasfar, 100km south of Casablanca, where the government has allocated 283 hectares to electric battery industries.
Last year the Moroccan government and China's Gotion agreed to look into setting up an electric vehicle battery plant in the kingdom with up to $6.3bn (about R115,671,780,000) in eventual investment.
Industry minister Ryad Mezzour told Reuters last month the Gotion project was advancing with discussions on the footprint and location.
Chinese firms are lured by Morocco's geographic location on the Strait of Gibraltar, its free trade agreements with key EU and US markets and its existing automotive industry cluster.
The automotive sector topped Morocco's industrial exports at $14bn (about R257,048,400,000) in 2023, up 27%.
Morocco is home to production plants by Stellantis and Renault with an annual combined production capacity of 700,000 cars as well as a cluster of local suppliers.
China’s Hailiang, Shinzoom to build EV battery plants in Morocco
Image: Supplied
Chinese car battery manufacturers Hailiang and Shinzoom will set up two separate plants in Morocco as the country seeks to adapt its growing automotive sector to increasing demand for electric vehicles (EVs), Moroccan officials said on Tuesday.
Authorities in charge of developing the Moroccan northern industrial zone, Tanger Tech, said Hailiang plans to build a copper plant worth $450m (about R8,260,920,000) on an area of 30 hectares.
Shinzoom, part of Hunan Zhongke, will invest $460m (about R8,444,496,000) in an anodes plant spanning more than 20 hectares, they said.
Last month the Moroccan government gave the green light for Chinese electric battery maker BTR New Material Group to build a factory near Tangier to produce key component cathodes.
Another Chinese manufacturer, CNGR Advanced Material, is expected to build a cathode plant in Jorf Lasfar, 100km south of Casablanca, where the government has allocated 283 hectares to electric battery industries.
Last year the Moroccan government and China's Gotion agreed to look into setting up an electric vehicle battery plant in the kingdom with up to $6.3bn (about R115,671,780,000) in eventual investment.
Industry minister Ryad Mezzour told Reuters last month the Gotion project was advancing with discussions on the footprint and location.
Chinese firms are lured by Morocco's geographic location on the Strait of Gibraltar, its free trade agreements with key EU and US markets and its existing automotive industry cluster.
The automotive sector topped Morocco's industrial exports at $14bn (about R257,048,400,000) in 2023, up 27%.
Morocco is home to production plants by Stellantis and Renault with an annual combined production capacity of 700,000 cars as well as a cluster of local suppliers.
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