The industrial zones in the North of the Kingdom are stepping on the accelerator in order to maintain their rank in the global automobile industry. Several major international players, particularly Asian ones, continue to set up there, while Tangier Automative City is preparing to expand. The North of Morocco is more determined than ever to play a leading role in the industrial Morocco of tomorrow. And the latest news that follows these weeks are still there to demonstrate it. Indeed, several major international players have either announced their establishment or are preparing to position themselves in the Tangier-Tetouan-Al Hoceima region. And, of course, it is in local industrial zones that they prefer to set up, especially to fully support the move upmarket in the automobile industry. It is with this in mind that MP Industry Group, a subsidiary of the MEN Industry Group, specializing in the manufacturing of plastic components for the automotive industry in Romania, inaugurated its first factory at the Tanger Med industrial platform last Friday, November 22. This factory is located in Tangier Automotive City (TAC), over an area of 35,000 m2, and is active in the manufacturing of plastic parts, using the technology of injecting granules into steel molds, for an investment of 437 billion dirhams, with the creation of 150 direct jobs. Interest from Asians A few weeks earlier, it was around the Chinese group Qingdao Sentury Tire Co. to launch effective production in its new tire manufacturing plant in Tangier. With an investment of $297 million, this player aims to produce no less than 3.6 million tires per year. This production is intended for cars and light trucks. This new establishment also strengthens Morocco’s commercial links with Europe and Asia and reinforces its role as a regional industrial epicenter. And the dynamic of attracting large industrial players is not yet over, since here we now understand that the region has a leading role to play at the national level to attract more large groups, particularly European and Asian. Relocation Moreover, the arrival of the Japanese Sandem, specialized in equipment, has also been announced. The creation of its first platform on the continent is reported and it will be based in Tangier Automative City. This will be established on site under the name “Sandem Manufacturing Morocco”. Enough to strengthen the notoriety of this area located a few dozen km from the city of the strait. This explains, in particular, the government’s vision and decision to increase the surface area of this zone, with the adoption in the Government Council of the draft decree aimed at increasing, from 517 ha to 1,185 ha, the surface area of the Tangier Automotive City (TAC) export processing zone. This increase in surface area would, according to the government, meet the growing demand from industrial investors wishing to establish their projects in the area. Extension This is the second extension of TAC, after that of 2019, which saw it increase since 2013 from 260 ha (TAC 1) to 517 ha (350 ha net) after the launch of the TAC 2 extension. This industrial perimeter, it should be remembered, is part of the Tanger Med Zone industrial hub, with management provided by the Tanger Med Special Agency (TMSA). It should be noted that the TAC site offers direct access to the Tanger Med Port (22 km) and Tanger Free Zone (20 km), thus ensuring truck deliveries to Northern Europe in less than 48 hours. TAC is also located next to Renault Tanger Med (-2 km), the largest auto factory mobile of Africa, with a current production capacity of 400,000 vehicles per year. Currently, the industrial zone includes some 381 plots of land, including 295 plots of land for TAC 1 and 86 plots of land for TAC 2. Creation of businesses: the North in second position A total of 8,741 new businesses were created at the end of August 2024 in the Tangier-Tétouan-Al Hoceima region. This is what the Moroccan Office of Industrial and Commercial Property (OMPIC) reports. These overall figures for the region place it in second position nationally, behind Casablanca-Settat. These business creations are distributed between legal entities (5,161) and natural persons (3,580), according to the latest general dashboard from OMPIC. Thus, the city of Tangier comes first with 6,276 new businesses, followed by Tétouan (1,227), Larache (324), Ksar El Kébir (304), Al Hoceima (291), Chefchaouen (124), Ouezzane (76), Assilah (81) and Targuist (38).
