Gotion High-Tech, a prominent Chinese company in the electric vehicle battery industry, has announced its plan to invest more than $6.5 billion in a gigafactory located in Morocco. This will be the first gigafactory of its kind in Africa and is expected to generate over 25,000 job opportunities while also bolstering Morocco’s leading position in the automotive sector.
The announcement regarding this electric vehicle battery industrial ecosystem was made during the ongoing 2023 “GITEX Africa,” the largest tech and start-up event, held in Marrakesh. The Memorandum of Understanding was signed by Li Zhen, the chairman of Gotion High-Tech, and Mohcine Jazouli, the Moroccan delegate minister for investment, in the presence of Aziz Akhannouch, the Head of Government.
Situated in the Rabat-Sale-Kenitra region, specifically in Bouknadel Commune, the gigafactory will have an impressive annual production capacity of 100 GW. Its primary focus will be on manufacturing batteries for electric vehicles and energy storage systems.
Morocco’s automotive industry has been experiencing rapid growth and has the potential to achieve an annual production capacity of 1 million vehicles. A significant proportion, approximately 90%, of the country’s automotive production is exported to more than 75 countries worldwide.
Morocco benefits from free trade agreements (FTAs) with the United States, the European Union, and several other nations, which facilitate its exports. Additionally, the country possesses valuable mining resources like manganese, a crucial metal used in the production of batteries for electric vehicles and other renewable energy applications such as Tesla’s Powerwall batteries and electricity grid storage.
Manganese plays a critical role in the supply chain of lithium-ion batteries. Electrolytic manganese dioxide (EMD), an upgraded form of manganese, serves as a vital component in lithium-ion, alkaline, and zinc-manganese batteries.
