French carmaker Renault to invest $1bn in Morocco

French carmaker Renault has signed agreements with Morocco to invest more than $1 billion and create 50,000 jobs in the North African country, the Moroccan industry minister said.

"This strategic project alone will give Morocco 50,000 new jobs and combine investment of more than 10 billion Moroccan dirhams" (more than $1 billion/912 million euros ), Moulay Hafid Elalamy said, after the deal was signed on Friday in the presence of King Mohamed VI.

The agreement "definitively changes the automotive sector in Morocco", the minister said, adding that it has been the kingdom's main exporting sector for the past three years.

Renault's head of operations for the Africa-Middle East-India region was optimistic about the deal.

The agreements will "more than double the revenue that we make in Morocco, with a target of two billion euros in a few years," Bernard Cambier said.

He said Renault products made in two factories in Morocco so far showed "the best quality of all... Renault-Nissan plants" worldwide.

The Africa-Middle East-India region is Renault's top market worldwide outside Europe, with sales there increasing by 16.9 percent in 2015, according to figures published in January.

Sales went up by 11.5 percent in Morocco and by 8.7 percent in Algeria.

Renault-Nissan is the world's fourth-largest carmaker after Toyota, Volkswagen and General Motors, and produces one in 10 cars sold across the globe.
Source: AFP