The Moroccan government gave the green light on Friday for Chinese electric battery maker BTR New Material Group to build a factory near Tangier to produce key component cathode.

The plant, to be built at a cost of 3 billion dirhams ($300 million), will have a production capacity of 50,000 tonnes, Morocco’s investment ministry said.

The first output of 25,000 tonnes is expected in September 2026, the ministry said in a statement following the signing of the investment deal with BTR.

Moroccan officials have often pitched the north African country as a good location for EV battery factories because of its existing auto industry and renewable energy sectors, and the presence of raw materials including cobalt and phosphates.

Stellantis-owned Citroen has a plant in Kenitra in northwest Morocco with capacity to produce 50,000 supermini electric cars, while Renault and Stellantis-owned Peugeot make combustion-engine cars in Morocco, which is also a base for a cluster of car parts makers.

(Reporting by Ahmed Eljechtimi; Editing by Susan Fenton)