The Marseille Fos port authority and Quechen Silicon Chemical signed an agreement ratifying the company’s decision to build a €105 million ($118 million) processing plant on a 12-hectare site in the Fos industrial zone. Quechen signed an initial letter of intent with the French port in January 2018.
Specifically, Quechen is the world’s third biggest producer of silicon used in making environmentally-friendly vehicle tires.
Due on stream in 2021, the largest Chinese-owned factory in France will produce 130 direct jobs and annual cargo throughput of 400,000 tons.
Quechen was for many years looking for the potential European sites, before concluding to the Marseille Fos.
Prior to the official signing, a ground lease was sealed in October 2018 that marked the beginning of site surveys in the area.
Consequently, from October the technical design and planning application processes have been emerging, with the assistance of the port authority and the economic boost of agency Provence Promotion.
The plant, located in the heart of a 1,200-hectare area of the Fos industrial zone, will start operations in 2021.
Concluding, the investment is further proof of the attractiveness of the industrial platforms in the Gulf of Fos area, while it also accentuates the efficient collaboration between the different institutions and organisations working to bring investment to the territory.