French Automakers Face Pressure to Relocate Production from Morocco

Will French manufacturers relocate their production? This is in any case the wish of Bruno Le Maire, who does not leave the players in the automotive industry a choice, unless they want to benefit from the aid that can help them "overcome the difficulties related to the current health crisis". On BFM Business, the Minister of the Economy declared "that it is time for the French automotive industry to relocate certain productions". What will become of the Renault plants in Tangier and the Peugeot plant in Kenitra? What employment opportunities for the thousands of people who work there?

Behind the call for relocation is the desire to boost the electric car. "We are ready to participate in the electric battery industry and the state is also ready to invest". The French government seems to have enough arguments to convince the manufacturers. "This is how we will manage to build a stronger automotive industry," says the minister, stressing that "to move forward, the French automotive industry will also have to take measures in favor of the "ecological transition" and "gain in competitiveness", reports autoplus.fr.

The same source recalls that in 2019, PSA produced 36% of its global production in France, while within the Renault group, this figure stood last year at nearly 18%. "Two of the flagship models of national production, the Peugeot 208 and Renault Clio city cars, are no longer manufactured in France. The Clio 5 is mainly assembled in Turkey and Slovenia, while the 208 is produced in Slovakia and Morocco".