A factory that was supposed to be built in China will now be built in Nador. Chinese metals group Ningbo Boway Alloy Material has moved its planned special alloy production project from Ningbo to Morocco. The project is worth about $150m (1.5bn dirhams). The new plant will produce 30,000 tonnes of special alloy strips each year. These materials are used to make parts for electronics, semiconductors, electric vehicles and AI servers.
The project will cost 1.076bn yuan, or about $150m. Boway plans to use 1.003bn yuan raised through convertible bonds to fund it.
A new local subsidiary, Boway Alloy New Materials Morocco, will mainly run the project.
Why Boway chose Nador
Boway said the move was linked to “rapid changes in international trade policies” and the need to “better meet the needs of major customers.”
The company wants to reduce the impact of tariffs and other trade barriers. It also wants to produce closer to customers in Europe and North America.
“The adjustment allows the company to rapidly adapt to changes in international trade policy, reduce the impact of trade barriers, and bring production capabilities directly adjacent to key clients in Europe and North America.”
The factory will cover about 188,000 sq m in the Betoya Industrial Acceleration Zone.
Boway had originally planned to complete the project in Ningbo in June 2026. The new plant in Nador is now expected to start production in December 2028.
Nador West Med is also expected to start its first operations in late 2026. The port will include industrial and logistics areas aimed at export businesses.
Materials used in EVs and AI
The plant will make high-precision copper alloy strips.
These materials are used in semiconductor and electronic components, including parts used to connect and cool chips.
Electric vehicle makers also use them in high-voltage busbars, connectors, sensors and battery-management systems.
AI servers are another market. The materials can be used in connectors, server backplanes and equipment for high-speed data transfer.
Boway also wants its production sites to be closer to major customers.
“Establishing local production nodes in key economic regions guarantees supply chain resilience and enhances direct service delivery to global tier-one electronics manufacturing partners.”
A growing industrial base in Nador
Boway is not the only foreign manufacturer investing in the Nador area.
Wind-turbine blade maker Aeolon has a factory there. Shandong Yongsheng Rubber is also building a tyre plant that is planned to produce 18 million tyres a year.
The wider industrial push also includes Gotion High-Tech, which is developing a large electric vehicle battery plant in Kénitra.
For Boway, the move means more than changing the location of a planned factory. The company has also shifted the project’s funding, operating company and production plans from Ningbo to Nador.
