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Marrakech – Chinese auto parts manufacturer Ningbo Gaofa Automotive Control System has confirmed plans to establish its first production facility outside Asia in Morocco, according to a May 6 equity research note by Dongxing Securities.
The Shanghai-listed company, which specializes in gear shift assemblies, electronic accelerator pedals, and automotive cables, intends to set up a wholly owned subsidiary called Gaofa Automotive Control System (Morocco) Co. Ltd. The entity is expected to serve as the group’s primary overseas production platform.
First announced in July 2025, the project could mobilize up to $20 million in equity financing. The Moroccan subsidiary will be held either directly or through Gaofa’s investment arm in Hainan, established in August 2025, or via its Singapore-registered entity set up in late 2024.
Administrative approvals have not yet been finalized, and the Moroccan entity has not begun its registration process, according to the company’s 2025 annual report.
The move comes as Ningbo Gaofa recorded its first-ever overseas revenue in 2025, totaling 7.24 million yuan. The figure is modest but marks a turning point for a company that had until recently operated exclusively in China. The overseas gross margin stood at 24.2%, slightly above the 23.83% recorded domestically.
On the commercial front, the company completed small-batch deliveries to Stellantis and Renault Group in 2025, according to the Dongxing note. Its Malaysian subsidiary also launched production and began supplying national carmaker Proton during the same year.
The choice of Morocco follows a logic of proximity to international clients and cost reduction, the Dongxing report noted, citing the country’s advantages in land costs, labor, and taxation. For a supplier whose key European accounts are Stellantis and Renault – both operating assembly plants in Tangier and Kenitra – the industrial rationale is clear.
Ningbo Gaofa’s domestic performance continues to underpin its international push. In 2025, the company posted revenue of 1.58 billion yuan, up 8.28% year-on-year, and net profit attributable to shareholders of 216.2 million yuan, up 13.43%. Sales of electronic gear shift assemblies reached 3.48 million units, a 12.26% increase, while pedal assembly sales surged 61.01% to 11.96 million units.
The first quarter of 2026 showed a slight revenue dip of 5.55% to 365.1 million yuan, though net profit edged up 1.5% to 46.9 million yuan. The consolidated gross margin came in at 23.8% in Q1 2026, up 2.6 percentage points from a year earlier, reflecting what Dongxing described as robust cost control in a sector where price wars continue to squeeze supplier margins.
The company also sits on significant cash reserves. Its combined monetary assets, financial products, and term deposits totaled 1.028 billion yuan at the end of 2025 – roughly two-thirds of its annual revenue. It proposed distributing 178.4 million yuan in dividends, equivalent to 82.5% of its net profit.
Dongxing Securities maintained its buy recommendation on the stock, projecting net profit of 242 million yuan in 2026, 280 million in 2027, and 325 million in 2028.
Ningbo Gaofa’s arrival adds to a growing wave of Chinese automotive suppliers choosing Morocco as an industrial base. Ningbo Boway Alloy, another Zhejiang-based manufacturer, recently committed $150 million to an electronic alloys plant in Nador.
Battery giant Gotion High-Tech has begun construction of Africa’s first gigafactory in Kenitra, with production slated for the third quarter of 2026. The initial phase represents a $1.3 billion investment for 20 GWh of manufacturing capacity, with plans to scale to 100 GWh across five phases under a comprehensive $6.5 billion commitment.
Chinese tire manufacturer Shandong Yongsheng Rubber is also building what will be Africa’s largest car tire factory in Morocco’s Driouch province. The plant, developed through its Moroccan subsidiary Goldensen Tyre Morocco, represents a MAD 6.7 billion ($670 million) investment.
Battery materials manufacturers BTR, CNGR, Hailiang, Shinzoom, Tinci Materials, Yahua Group, and COBCO have also announced or launched investments in Morocco, helping turn the country from an automotive assembly base into an emerging electric-vehicle supply-chain hub spanning cathodes, anodes, copper components, electrolytes, lithium refining, and battery-cell production.
The planned capital for Ningbo Gaofa’s Moroccan entity is set at $100,000, with a permanent address still to be determined. Final details remain subject to regulatory and administrative validation. The company employs 1,753 workers in China.
Read also: China’s Backdoor: How Morocco Became Key in the Battery Trade War
