New competitor in the hydrogen car race, one that appears on the other side of the Mediterranean. Rabat has decided to bet strongly on its own automotive industry, “made in Morocco”, and the fight for hydrogen vehicles, the great hope of mobility for those who are skeptical of the limited autonomy and long recharging times they require the electric ones. Proof that the Alaouite kingdom is serious about its commitment is that it has given it the status of a state affair, with a ceremony included led by King Mohamed VI.
That and not starting from scratch.
What has happened? That Morocco has decided to bet on what in Rabat they already define as automotive “made in Morocco”, one that goes beyond the muscle developed in the country by multinationals such as Stellantis or Renault-Nissan. And he wanted to do it by supporting two projects: Neo Motors and NamX. The first is a company with Moroccan capital that aspires to manufacture 27,000 units a year. The second, a firm in which Moroccan talent has participated and has a prototype of a hydrogen vehicle that it hopes to market as early as 2025.
A big show. In the movement in Morocco, both the substance and the forms are important. The presentation of both projects was accompanied by a ceremony in style, with prototypes included, held at the Royal Palace of Rabat and headed by Mohammed VI. The quote was echoed by both the website of the Kingdom of Morocco and the Agence Marocaine de Presse (MAP).
“The presentation to the king of the Neo Motors car and the NamX hydrogen vehicle prototype underscores the sovereign’s will to encourage and promote pioneering national business initiatives and creative capabilities,” says the MAP statement published by the Kingdom’s website. from Morocco. It also stresses that both projects will serve to “consolidate the position” of the African country “as a competitive automotive production platform.”
What is Neo Motors? One of the protagonists of the presentation. Rabat defines it as “the first Moroccan brand of consumer vehicles”, a Moroccan capital firm that has established an industrial unit in Ain Aouda, a city located in the suburban area of Rabat, to manufacture cars for the local and export markets. . Its objective — specifies the MAP agency — is to produce about 27,000 units per year and contribute to development: its local integration rate will in fact be 65% and it foresees an investment of 156 million dirhams —equivalent to 14.3 million euros— and the creation of 580 jobs.
At the moment, it has managed to get the Road Safety Agency to grant it the approval of its first vehicle and to start pre-production. The inauguration of the ship is already planned for June. “This project, which will give rise to the first consumer car brand in Morocco, is driven by national experience. It is based on the ecosystem of local suppliers,” he notes.
The hydrogen race. Neo Motors is not the only firm that has captured the attention of Rabat. The other protagonist was NamX, a name not entirely new in the automotive sector. The company had already made itself known a year ago in Italy and, later, in October, during the Paris Salon. Founded by Faouzi Annajah and Thomas de Lussac, it claims to be a leading Afro-European company in premium hydrogen SUVs. Its model stands out for its fixed tank, which is combined with six removable capsules that facilitate refilling.
Rabat wanted to highlight the company’s link with Morocco. And while he acknowledges that the concept has been designed in collaboration with Italian firm Pininfarina, the interior is the fruit of “Moroccan talents.” “This pilot project places Morocco in the current global dynamics of developing new forms of transport that combine efficiency and respect for the environment,” says MAP, who recalls that both the director of Neo Motors and Annajah, president and founder of Namx , have received the Wissam Al-Kafaa Al-Fikria distinction.
A well calibrated bet. The Rabat movement is well measured and connects with policies that it has been applying for some time. The main one is its commitment to the automotive industry, which has allowed it to capture the interest of Stellantis, Renault-Nissan or even BYD and consolidate itself as a key country in the sector within Africa. Sky News Arabia has come to place it in 2022 as the first country on the continent in automobile manufacturing and the automotive industry is already its main export sector, ahead of the agri-food sector. NewsWireNGR ranks it below South Africa in production, but still ahead of Africa in exports.
With this backdrop, the country has not hesitated to seek alliances to promote new technologies, such as hydrogen vehicles or battery electric vehicles. The British-Moroccan firm Atlas e-Mobility Group, based in London, has in fact just announced that it will present the first BEV designed and manufactured in Africa and plans to build factories in the country. Another of its bets is also energy, a field in which it has also made progress: it has already taken the first steps for the production of green hydrogen and has achieved important alliances.
Images: NamX 1 and 2
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