China is building a European electric vehicle (BEV) battery supply chain in Morocco, at a time when the continent seeks to develop its own industry, according to the head of operations of PowerCo, Sebastian Wolf.
“We don’t have any supply chain. This has to be configured,” said the director of operations of Volkswagen’s battery unit last Tuesday, in statements at an event in Stuttgart reported by Bloomberg.
“At this time, we have to be honest that the establishment of the LFP (Lithium Ferrophosphate Battery) supply chain is taking place in Morocco and not in Europe,” he added.
Batteries for China
China has tight control over global battery manufacturing, as well as the raw materials such as lithium, nickel and cobalt needed to make them.
Europe is trying to build its own supply chain, but is years behind in terms of technology. At the same time, the region is losing investments to state Joined and Canadawhere government financial incentives have been more aggressive.
Lithium iron phosphate batteries are rapidly gaining adoption as a less expensive technology that has become more efficient in recent years. China can produce LFP batteries at almost half the cost of the world average, according to BloombergNEF.
Morocco
Morocco, the agency notes, is rich in phosphate resources, key to manufacturing LFP cells. The country is also located at the gates of Europe and benefits from free trade with the United States. Joined.
Last year, CNGR Advanced Materia, a Chinese battery components manufacturer, announced it would join forces with African private investment fund Al Mada to build an industrial base in Morocco.
With a total investment of more than $2 billion (€1.861 million), they said they intended to begin production of battery materials at a new site in Jorf Lasfar, on Morocco’s Atlantic coast, in 2025.
