The first manufacturing facility dedicated to producing electric battery active materials, inaugurated on Wednesday by COBCO in Jorf Lasfar, marks a major milestone for Morocco's industrial sector. The result of a strategic partnership between AL MADA, a Moroccan pan-African investment fund, and CNGR Advanced Materials, a global leader in battery materials, this industrial platform affirms Morocco's growing role as a regional hub for clean technologies and a committed player in the global green-tech economy. During the inauguration, COBCO announced the launch of the first phase of its production complex for nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) precursor cathodes (pCAM). Spanning over 238 hectares, the site is dedicated to processing critical metals essential to the energy transition, particularly domestic resources such as phosphate, cobalt, and manganese. These raw materials are locally transformed into strategic components for batteries used in electric vehicles and stationary energy storage systems. With a total investment of MAD 20 billion (approximately $2 billion), the plant will produce high-tech chemical components for lithium-ion batteries, primarily for the European and North American markets. Two strategic products will be manufactured on-site, requiring significant investment, advanced expertise, and cutting-edge technology: NMC (nickel-manganese-cobalt) precursors, with a target production of 120,000 metric tons per year, and LFP (lithium-iron-phosphate) cathodes, with an annual target of 60,000 metric tons. COBCO also addresses the upstream segment of the value chain, with a dual objective: to boost local integration and create industrial value in Morocco. This includes refining critical metals (nickel, cobalt, manganese) for NMC precursor production and recycling black mass—residue from end-of-life batteries—to extract strategic metals such as lithium, nickel, and cobalt. The recycling unit will have a processing capacity of 30,000 metric tons per year. At full capacity, the platform will support the production of 70 GWh per year—enough to power nearly one million electric vehicles annually. By fostering the emergence of a Moroccan ecosystem dedicated to the strategic battery industry and focusing on European and North American markets, COBCO aims to serve as a key industrial bridge between Africa, Europe, and China. This initiative reinforces Morocco's position as a regional energy and industrial hub driving the global energy transition. During construction, the project created over 5,000 jobs. Once fully operational, it is expected to generate more than 1,800 highly skilled direct jobs and 1,800 indirect jobs across subcontracting, logistics, services, and local infrastructure. COBCO's environmental strategy is built on several pillars, including the development of a low-carbon industrial site based on circular economy principles and high environmental performance. Certification procedures aligned with major international standards will begin in 2025. The facility aims to source 80% of its energy from Moroccan green energy by 2025 and reach 100% by the end of 2026. It will also use desalinated water and implement water treatment and recycling systems.
