Chinese EV Giant BYD Scraps Plans for Electric Battery Factory in Morocco

The Chinese giant complains about the slow transition of public transport companies to electric buses. Only ALSA Maroc, the Moroccan subsidiary of the Spanish group, has launched the order for electric buses, a low enthusiasm that does not motivate the Chinese group to set up a battery production plant in Tanger Tech, reports El Español. On December 9, 2017 in Casablanca, the CEO of BYD Auto Industry, Wang Chuanfu, had signed, in the presence of King Mohammed VI, a memorandum of understanding for the construction of factories in Morocco, in partnership with the Moroccan businessman Mehdi Laraki.

The project included the construction of a car battery factory, an electric bus and truck factory, and an electric monorail car factory on a 50-hectare site, 30 of which were covered. This project was expected to generate 2,500 direct jobs and contribute to strengthening relations between China and Africa. In addition to the three factories, the construction of an electric car production unit was also planned. Nearly seven years later, the project remains at a standstill. Pending its realization, BYD has signed a partnership agreement with the leading Moroccan automobile distributor, Auto Nejma Mercedes-Benz Maroc, for the marketing of its electric vehicles in Morocco.

Meanwhile, the head of the Moroccan government, Aziz Akhannouch, signed on Friday in Rabat an investment agreement of around 300 million euros with the Chinese group BTR New Material for the construction of a cathode production unit, an essential component of electric vehicle batteries. This factory with a capacity of 50,000 tons per year will be built in Tanger Tech on a 15-hectare site. Its commissioning is scheduled for September 2026 in a first phase with a production of 25,000 tons per year.

This investment in the electric mobility sector "is not isolated", declared Mohcine Jazouli, the Minister of Investment, stressing that it is the first of a series of several major projects to come, aimed at positioning Morocco as an attractive hub for the electric vehicle battery industry. In addition, the Minister of Industry, Ryad Mezzour, held a meeting on March 25 in Rabat with all the importers of utility vehicles to "propose to them to assemble 1,500 urban buses in Morocco in less than two years", says a source in the sector, adding that the latter "told him that it was impossible to do such a thing, with the current resources and market".