info.afrindex.com
China-Africa Trade Information Service
Image from Moroccoworldnews
Alstom SA, a French company with global operations in rail and tram transport systems, is investing €10.5 million to expand its industrial base in Morocco. Alstom’s facility in the city of Fez will be equipped with a second production line to manufacture on-board transformers, the company announced in a statement earlier today.
According to the statement, the new production line will be operational in early 2023 and will take up nearly 13,000 m2 of the facility.
The fez plant that currently produces electrical cabinets will boost its production capacity of up to 200 transformers per year, Alstom said, confirming its willingness to participate in the economic emergence in Fez.
The transformers produced in Morocco will be installed on rolling stock in the Petit-Quevilly facility in France, Alstom’s center of excellence for transformers, and the activity will be supported by experts from the center of excellence, noted the statement.
The Petit-Quevilly facility’s experts will also be in charge of technology transfer, while the new cluster will be iso-qualified and approved by ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certification, the statement added.
“We are excited to bring a new production capability in Morocco, specializing in on-board transformers for our rolling stock,” said Nourddine Rhalmi, Managing Director of Alstom Morocco.
Rhalmi outlined that the new investment aims to demonstrate Alstom’s commitment to strengthening ties with Morocco and growing its industrial activity in the kingdom.
With more than 500 employees in Morocco, Alstom has completed several major projects across the country, such as the delivery of 190 Citadis X02 trams to the cities of Rabat (66 trams) and Casablanca (124 trams).
The company has also provided Morocco with 12 Avelia Euroduplex trains for the high-speed rail linking Tangier to Casablanca, in addition to 77 Prima locomotives that provide optimized solutions for freight, passenger, and combined transport services.
Rhalmi concluded by reaffirming Alstom’s commitment to further contribute to the development of Morocco’s rail infrastructure in the future.