Chinese EV battery production in Morocco as tariff workarounds, more Chinese renewables in Arab world, Chinese tourists to MENA, ChinaMed Project on China-Iran narratives, new book from Marc Lynch
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Made in Morocco: how China’s EV battery makers are powering past Western tariffs - South China Morning Post. I was recently talking with a China specialist in the EU who has done a lot of work on EVs, and asked about the prospect of China circumventing EU sanctions by building in Morocco. The response was that the EU has plugged that hole. But it seems the hole is still there as far as batteries goes. China-Morocco remains a fascinating story to track.
An electric vehicle (EV) battery parts maker has become the latest Chinese company to begin production in Morocco to target lucrative European and North American markets, while avoiding punishing Western tariffs.
CNGR Morocco New Energy - a subsidiary of China-based CNGR Advanced Material - holds a majority 50.03 per cent stake in joint venture COBCO, while African investment fund Al Mada owns the rest. The plant near Morocco's Jorf Lasfar deep water commercial port started producing nickel-based precursor cathode active materials (PCAM) in late January.
The facility is part of a US$2 billion deal signed in 2023 aimed at building an industrial base integrating ternary precursors, lithium-iron phosphate (LFP) and waste battery recycling. It is the latest move in the country by Chinese companies to circumvent tariffs and other import restrictions imposed by the United States and European Union.