MOROCCO TO BUILD AFRICA’S FIRST LOCALLY-DESIGNED HYBRID ENGINE IN €1.2 BILLION STELLANTIS BOOST

Kenitra plant emerges as Africa’s new auto-tech frontier with Stellantis’ latest investment push.

Morocco Africa Stellantis Hybrid engine Investment Manufacture Ecosystem Automotive.
Stellantis
Stellantis



Morocco is set to make history as the first African country to develop and manufacture a fully homegrown hybrid engine, following a landmark €1.2 billion investment by global automotive giant Stellantis in its Kenitra plant.

The expansion, unveiled on Wednesday, July 16, signals a transformative phase in Morocco’s growing role as a continental automotive powerhouse. Samir Cherfan, Stellantis’ Chief Operating Officer for the Middle East and Africa, hailed the North African country’s industrial ecosystem as “attractive, competitive, and rapidly evolving,” underlining its increasing centrality in the company’s regional blueprint.

At the heart of the new plan is the production of Morocco’s first fully designed hybrid engine, a major technological leap for the continent. The Kenitra plant’s annual production capacity will also rise to 535,000 vehicles and 350,000 engines, to achieve a remarkable 75% local integration rate by 2030, a milestone unmatched anywhere in Africa.

Beyond innovation, the project is poised to generate 3,100 new direct jobs and inject an estimated 60 billion dirhams (about €5.5 billion) into Morocco’s local supply chain. This strategic move will solidify Kenitra’s status not just as a key export hub but as a beacon of African industrial excellence and innovation.

With this expansion, Stellantis reaffirms its long-term commitment to Morocco, positioning the country at the forefront of sustainable mobility and reshaping the African automotive narrative from assembly to innovation.

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