China deepens EV supply chain in Morocco to bypass European tariffs

State-backed infrastructure and strategic diplomacy pave the way for private Chinese battery and tire manufacturers near Africa's largest port.

By LineZotpaper AI staff

Published27 October 2026

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As European tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles fail to slow their market share growth, Beijing is quietly building an integrated EV supply chain in Morocco that could eventually bypass those barriers entirely, according to a new analysis by researchers Aaron Glasserman and Jessie Jiexi Lin.

Chinese electric vehicles already account for more than 9 percent of new car sales in Europe, and some estimates expect that share to reach about 20 percent of the Western European market by 2028. Brussels has imposed retaliatory tariffs on Chinese-made EVs, attributing their competitiveness largely to state subsidies. However, Glasserman and Lin argue that this view underestimates a more consequential development: Beijing's increasingly coordinated overseas industrial policy, combining state-owned enterprises (SOEs) that build infrastructure and secure resources with private companies that bring production capacity.

Morocco has become a key node in this strategy. Since joining China's Belt and Road Initiative in 2017, the North African country has received over $10 billion in committed Chinese investment, concentrated in the EV and energy sectors. Chinese SOEs have collaborated on major infrastructure projects, including bridges, highways, and smart cities, as well as a chemical processing unit in Khouribga, home to one of the world's largest phosphate reserves critical for EV battery production.

Private Chinese companies have leveraged these state-shaped platforms. Tanger Tech City, a flagship SOE-led collaboration located less than 30 miles from Africa's largest container port, Tanger Med, offers no-fee business registration and tax-free dividends. Battery giant BTR New Material Group, tire manufacturers Sentury Tire and Guizhou Tyre, battery maker Gotion (with a $1.3 billion factory expected to create 17,000 local jobs), and a $2 billion joint venture between CNGR Advanced Material and Moroccan private equity firm Al Mada have all established or announced production bases in the country.

China's success has also depended on aligning with Morocco's ambitions: creating jobs in an economy where unemployment has barely dipped below 10 percent for a decade and urban youth unemployment stands at 47 percent. Beijing has coupled this with a diplomatic shift on Western Sahara, a core issue for Rabat. After decades of leaning toward self-determination for the Sahrawi people, China's foreign ministry in 2024 stated it supports Morocco in maintaining national security and stability, and last fall Beijing abstained on a UN resolution that endorsed Morocco's proposal for Western Sahara as an autonomous region under its sovereignty.

While Chinese automakers are not yet building assembly plants in Morocco, a BYD plant project has been stalled since 2017 due to budget issues and limited charging infrastructure, the country is becoming an integrated hub for upstream EV supply chain components.

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Analysis

Why This Matters

European tariffs on Chinese EVs may prove ineffective if China can manufacture vehicles and components in tariff-exempt partner countries like Morocco.
The strategy highlights an evolving Chinese industrial policy model that combines state infrastructure investment, private capital, and diplomatic leverage.
Morocco's emergence as an EV supply chain hub could reshape the global auto industry and deepen economic ties between Africa and Asia.

Background

For years, Western policymakers have attributed the competitiveness of Chinese electric vehicles primarily to state subsidies. However, China's approach to overseas investment has grown more coordinated, with state-owned enterprises laying infrastructure groundwork that private companies then exploit. Morocco, historically closer to Algeria, shifted its strategic alignment with China after joining the Belt and Road Initiative in 2017, attracting billions in investment concentrated in the EV sector.

Key Perspectives

Aaron Glasserman and Jessie Jiexi Lin (Foreign Policy analysts): argue that while subsidies matter, China's real advantage comes from a coordinated model where SOEs build infrastructure and secure resources, then private companies leverage those platforms, a challenge that tariffs alone cannot address.

What to Watch

Whether Chinese automakers eventually build assembly plants in Morocco, overcoming current infrastructure and budget obstacles.
How the European Union responds to potential tariff circumvention via Morocco.
Whether Beijing's diplomatic shift on Western Sahara deepens and whether it draws a reaction from Algeria.

Sources

China Is Building Its Way Around Europe’s EV Tariffs · Foreign Policy

Checked

11 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 1 supported.

Show each claim

Partly supportedChina is deepening Morocco’s EV supply chain to bypass European tariffs.Foreign Policy: “The advantages ... are already on full display in Morocco, where years of existing strategic investment, infrastructure development, and geopolitical maneuvering are pushing China closer to vertically integrating EV supply chains, bypassing tariffs”
Not in the sourcesThe analysis is by researchers Aaron Glasserman and Jessie Jiexi Lin.
Partly supportedChinese electric vehicles account for more than 9 percent of new car sales in Europe.Foreign Policy: “As of December, more than 9 percent of all new automobiles sold in Europe were made in China”
Partly supportedEuropean tariffs have failed to slow the growth of Chinese EV market share.Foreign Policy: “Even as Brussels imposes tariffs on Chinese-made EVs, their market share only continues to grow.”
Partly supportedA new analysis by the named researchers says Beijing is building an integrated supply chain that could eventually bypass the barriers entirely.Foreign Policy: “if Chinese EV companies succeed in establishing vehicle assembly factories and fully integrating supply chains in Morocco, they will be able to sell vehicles to Europe under a “Made in Morocco” label, avoiding both the 10 percent EU standard automobile tariff and the additional punitive tariff”
SupportedSome estimates expect Chinese EVs to reach about 20 percent of the Western European market by 2028.Foreign Policy: “some estimates expecting Chinese EVs to account for roughly 20 percent of the Western European market by 2028”
Partly supportedBrussels imposed retaliatory tariffs, attributing Chinese EVs’ competitiveness largely to state subsidies.Foreign Policy: “Brussels’s retaliatory tariffs reflect a common Western view that high-value Chinese products are competitive in global markets largely because of state subsidies.”
Partly supportedMorocco has received over $10 billion in committed Chinese investment, concentrated in EV and energy sectors.Foreign Policy: “In March, China’s committed investment in the country exceeded $10 billion, concentrated mostly in the EV and energy sectors.”
Partly supportedOfficials expect Gotion’s $1.3 billion factory to create 17,000 local jobs.Foreign Policy: “Officials claim that the Gotion factory alone will create 17,000 local jobs, including 2,300 high-skilled positions.”
Partly supportedFor decades, China leaned toward self-determination for the Sahrawi people.Foreign Policy: “For decades, China has avoided explicitly backing either Morocco or Western Sahara, though its rhetoric often leaned toward the latter”
Partly supportedThe BYD plant project has been stalled since 2017 because of budget issues and limited charging infrastructure.Foreign Policy: “the recent shelving of a BYD assembly plant project that had been stalled since 2017 due to budget issues and limited local charging infrastructure, according to a company executive.”