(Bloomberg) -- Zhejiang Hailiang Co., a major producer of copper tubes and rods, plans to build a plant in Morocco for $288 million that manufactures new energy materials, including lithium-battery foil, to tap rising demand around the world.

The Chinese company aims to better serve clients in Europe, America, the Middle East and Africa through the new base, as geopolitical strains cause huge risks to trade and supply chains, it said in a filing on Tuesday to the Shenzhen Stock Exchange.

Zhejiang Hailiang has been tapping overseas markets as margins fall at home amid more restrictions on Chinese products due to rising tensions with western countries. Last year, it announced a 50,000-ton lithium-battery copper foil plant in Indonesia. The company also has production bases in the US, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Vietnam and Thailand. 

The Moroccan project will be able to produce 50,000 tons of alloy, 35,000 tons of pipe, 40,000 tons of rod and 25,000 tons of foil a year, after a construction period of 36 months, it said.

Morocco has free trade agreements with many western countries, including the US, the European Union and Turkey, which allows better access to those markets, Hailiang said. The project will also enjoy low raw material costs given Africa’s rich copper deposits, it said.

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