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Jeddah:
His Majesty Mohammed VI, King of Morocco, may God help him; Mr. Wang Chuanfu, President and Chairman of BYD Company Ltd.; Mr. Moulay Hafid Elalamy, the Minister of Industry, Investment,
Trade and Digital Economy; and Mr. Mohamed Boussaid, the Minister of Economy and Finance attended an MOU signing ceremony at the Royal Palace of Casablanca. The ceremony marked the beginning of cooperation between the Chinese new energy company and the Kingdom of Morocco to start the supply of a range of renewable energy solutions to the country leading by the company’s innovative straddle monorail system, the SkyRail; and to explore the possibility of localized production. The ceremony was also witnessed by other 200 VIPs from local political and business sectors.
His Majesty Mohammed VI, King of Morocco (Left) with Mr. Wang Chuanfu, President and Chairman of BYD
Company Ltd. at the Royal Palace of Casablanca
The agreement establishes a broad cooperation to introduce a 15-kilometer line – with a possible extension to over 70 kilometers – of the BYD SkyRail, as well as other transportation solutions, as part of the its zero emission energy ecosystem that comprises production, storage and usage of renewable energy. The BYD SkyRail is an elevated straddle monorail system to tackle the issue of urban traffic congestion that greatly contributes to urban emissions and pollution. Development took 5 years, 1,000 engineers and a nearly 1 billion US dollars to be completed, and the system offers significant advantages in terms of cost and construction time as compared to underground lines: 1/5 the cost and 1/3 of construction period. This solution is being implemented in over 20 Chinese cities as well as in Egypt and The Philippines in 2018.
The footprint of BYD electric bus and taxi has covered over 200 cities in 50 countries worldwide. BYD electric trucks have been put into operation in many parts of the world. The operation numbers have surpassed more than one thousand units in each area.
Mr. Wang Chuanfu stressed the importance of the partnership: “BYD is honored to partner with Morocco on this project, and share our global expertise in electric mobility over the past decade. This cooperation between the Kingdom of Morocco and BYD will be a good reference for other African countries in the application of new energy solutions in the near future”. The partnership was endorsed by Mr. Moulay Hafid Elalamy, who said: “BYD is Morocco’s best partner, and our cooperation based on the company’s global leading position and production experience in electric transportation as well as in solar and energy storage.” He added, “With the possibility of localize production, together we will march into a better and more sustainable future ahead”.
It also establishes that BYD introduce Chinese technical, production and quality standards in Morocco, the first time such exchange takes place in Africa. Among the largest economies in Africa, Morocco will then promote the establishment and development of renewable energy industry standards in neighboring countries. Moroccan authorities approached BYD because they saw the urgency to develop the renewable energy sector in their country, and found that BYD’s one-stop solution and mature operation experience perfectly met their demand.
BYD is the first energy company in the world to provide this holistic renewable power solution to Africa, in an important move towards leveraging its presence in the region and the continent, with Morocco taking the lead in sustainable development initiatives. The bi-lateral cooperation also confirms China as a powerhouse in the technology and manufacturing sectors, with BYD playing an important role in this process, more visibly with its innovation and technology in the global electric vehicle industry. This cooperation also represents a watershed in relations between the two countries, in alignment with China’s Belt and Road initiative and Go Out policy.
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About BYD
BYD Company Ltd. is a leading high-tech multinational company based in Shenzhen, China. Since its establishment in 1995, BYD has developed solid expertise in rechargeable batteries, becoming a relentless advocate of sustainable development. It has successfully expanded its renewable energy solutions globally with operations in over 50 countries and regions. After 23 years’ development, BYD has created a Zero Emissions Energy Ecosystem – affordable solar power generation, reliable energy storage, cutting-edge electrified transportation and a state of the art monorail. These Four Green Dreams make BYD an industry leader in the energy and transportation sector. BYD is listed on the Hong Kong and Shenzhen Stock Exchange. For more information, please visit http://www.byd.com.
