RABAT -- Morocco's government and China-based battery maker Gotion High Tech have agreed to look into setting up an electric-vehicle battery plant in the kingdom with up to $6.3 billion in eventual investment, the country's investment agency said.
The agency, AMDIE, gave no details on when a final decision on the plant would go ahead but said the two sides were looking at a factory. Reuters was the first to report Morocco was negotiating to add an EV battery plant in July 2022.
Moroccan officials have often pitched the kingdom as a good location for very large EV battery factories because of its existing automotive and renewable energy sectors and the presence of raw materials including cobalt and phosphates.
Morocco is home to production plants for Renault and Stellantis with a combined production capacity of 700,000 vehicles and a cluster of suppliers.
The Dacia Sandero and Peugeot 208 are examples of popular models built in Morocco.
Last year, the automotive sector topped Morocco's industrial exports with 111 billion dirhams ($11.1 billion), up 33 percent from last year.
