BME signs contract with China’s CATL for EGP 2 bn battery systems plant

Battery manufacturing company BME signed a contract with Chinese battery giant CATL to set up a EGP 2 bn-plus battery systems plant, according to a cabinet statement. The company — established by local auto makers MCV and Auto D — plans a first phase of 1 GWh annual production capacity focused on batteries for heavy commercial vehicles. The second phase would lift capacity to 5 GWh and expand into passenger car batteries and storage systems for solar and wind power.

What’s manufactured here vs what’s imported: The project targets 40% local content, covering assembly, battery management system integration, thermal management, and final system integration in Egypt, while the battery cells themselves are supplied by CATL from China. The project plans to serve both domestic and global markets.

What we don’t know: No timeline for construction or completion has been disclosed. The factory location has also not been announced.

IN CONTEXT- MCV was already a CATL customer before this JV — it uses CATL’s batteries for its C127 EV bus. MCV operates a USD 62 mn Volvo e-bus production line in New Salheya, with capacity for 1.2k electric buses per year for export to Europe. Industry Minister Kamel El Wazir said at the Volvo line inauguration in September 2025 that the country’s bus manufacturing capacity stood at 2k-2.5k buses annually.

Egypt’s battery-manufacturing pipeline is getting crowded: During Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Egypt earlier this month, Mansour Group signed an exploratory MoU with China’s Tianneng Battery Group to study Egyptian production of lead-acid automotive batteries and lithium cells for new-energy vehicles and storage applications. The government has also outlined plans for Huawei-backed energy storage manufacturing and standalone storage stations with a combined capacity of 4 GWh. China’s Sungrow broke ground last month on a USD 50 mn battery-storage plant in the Teda zone in Ain Sokhna.

Why it matters: This is a pack assembly plant, not a cell manufacturing facility. Egypt captures roughly 30-40% of the battery value chain (assembly, battery management system integration, and testing) while the cells — representing 60-70% of the value — are imported from CATL in China. Still, the agreement secures local pack supply for a rapidly expanding domestic EV ecosystem. EnterpriseAM has tracked at least eight passenger EV assembly projects in the pipeline, including Rox ESI, Al Mansour/MG, Al Amal Group/Dongfeng, Guide Automotive, BAIC/Alkan Auto, GV Auto/FAW, Jinbei/Ezz Elsewedy and Raya Auto — all needing locally made battery systems. Egypt’s battery market is projected to grow from USD 950 mn in 2026 to USD 4.34 bn by 2035, per consulting firm Next MSC.