MOROCCO – Citic Dicastal, a chinese state-owned global company specializing in manufacturing aluminum alloy parts for wheels has inaugurated its second plant in Kenitra, north of Rabat.

The group invested €350 million (about US$385 million) to complete the 30,000-square-meter project which is the second of its kind in Maghreb country.

The new plant which is expected to create over 1,200 jobs will feature “advanced technology,” enabling it to produce “premium products, as well as a range of larger rims,” Maghreb Arab Press (MAP) reported.

 During the facility’s inauguration ceremony, Morocco’s Minister of Trade and Industry Moulay Hafid Elalamy said that the plant positions Morocco in a “high-tech industry.”

For Elalamy, Citic’s second plant, “is an example of the successful Moroccan-Chinese cooperation in the industrial field and is part of the implementation of the Chinese government’s initiative called ‘One Road, One Belt.’”

The plant is also part of Morocco’s industrial acceleration plan to promote its domestic industry, the minister noted.

Commenting on the investment, the Moroccan trade minister emphasized that the Chinese company is one of the “largest state-owned industrial groups in China.”

He remarked that the first plant of the company is operational and serving customers in Morocco, the US, and Europe.

The ambassador of China to Morocco, Li Li, said that Citic’s project in the North African country is one of the largest investments of Sino-Moroccan cooperation.

Dicastal Morocco General Manager Badr Lahmoudi also commented on the inauguration of the new plant, stating that the group “aims to consolidate its achievements and implement a human development strategy, in close collaboration with teams in China, to support Moroccan talents and skills.”

He said that the company will launch the recruitment phase “as soon as possible.”

The Chinese car part manufacturer has several key customers, including Volkswagen, BMW, Renault-Nissan, Chrysler Automotive, Peugeot, and Toyota.

It has 30 production units in Europe, North America, and China, with an annual production capacity of 60 million wheels and 110,000 tons of engine and chassis components.