Chinese company to set up electric car battery factory in Morocco

The Chinese-European group Gotion High-Tech, which specialises in electric mobility, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Moroccan government under the presidency of Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch to set up a battery factory for electric cars. The project requires an estimated investment of 65 billion dirhams and is expected to create more than 25,000 jobs, according to Moroccan media reports.

The MoU was initialled by the Moroccan Minister of Investment, Mohcine Jazouli, and representatives of the Gotion company. As Jazouli pointed out, this MoU "is a necessary first step, prior to the signing of an investment agreement, which should allow the launch of a factory capable of consolidating Morocco's position as a leading player in the automotive industry", reports the Ecofin news agency.

For his part, the president of Gotion High-Tech, Li Zhen, acknowledged that his company is "happy" to cooperate with the Kingdom in this project whose objective is "decarbonisation and the deployment of innovative energy solutions". "The vision of His Majesty King Mohammed VI has enabled Morocco to establish good economic relations with many countries in the world," he added.

Morocco is making progress in the automotive field, as well as in electric mobility. In fact, last May, Mohammed VI presided over a ceremony at the Royal Palace in Rabat to present to the public the first Moroccan car model and a prototype of a hydrogen vehicle, also of Moroccan manufacture.

Rabat wants to continue along this line of sustainability and progress. In fact, the Moroccan Minister of Industry and Trade, Ryad Mezzour, announced that the North African country's electric car production capacity will reach 100,000 vehicles per year in two or three years, doubling current production.

Gotion High-Tech, like other international companies, has realised Morocco's great potential in this sector and has decided to invest in the Kingdom rather than in other countries. As reported by the specialised media Híbridos y Eléctricos, the Chinese company had been considering for months the idea of building a second assembly plant in Europe - the first was built in Germany - but has finally opted to consolidate the relationship with Morocco.

China's leading electric battery giant employs nearly 20,000 people worldwide, including in Asia, Europe and North America. In 2022, Gotion High-Tecn achieved a turnover of USD 3.2 billion, an increase of 122.59% on the previous year's figures.