By The Rio Times | Created at 2026-09-27 19:29:54 | Updated at 2026-09-27 22:01:52
3 hours ago
Algeria · INDUSTRY
Key Facts
- —The country Algeria, Africa’s largest country by area, has 47 million people and a US$287 billion economy, slightly smaller than Finland’s. Oil and gas dominate its exports.
- —Why it matters Algeria wants a car industry to cut imports and diversify. Carmakers including Volkswagen and Kia pulled out, partly because too few local parts suppliers existed.
- —Why now Carmakers must reach 40% local content within five years. Stellantis and China’s BAIC and JAC already assemble there, and Chery, Iveco and Hyundai plants are nearly ready.
- —What happened On 24 September 2026, Prime Minister Sifi Ghrieb opened General Plastic Injection, a state plant in Tissemsilt rated at 251,000 parts a year.
- —The numbers The project is valued at 5 billion dinars (about US$37 million), mostly seized assets, with 300 direct and 500 indirect jobs announced.
- —What it means for you Firms selling plastic car parts into Algeria face a 31 December 2026 import cut-off for anything the plant can make locally.
- —Still open Whether the plant can match imports on quality, price and delivery by January, and how strictly the import stop is enforced.
Algeria has reopened a plastic car-parts plant seized from a jailed tycoon. Carmakers must stop importing plastic parts it can make after 31 December 2026.
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Algeria, Africa’s largest country by area and a major gas exporter, is trying to build a car industry that uses local parts. On Thursday, 24 September, Prime Minister Sifi Ghrieb opened a state-owned Algeria plastic components factory in Tissemsilt province.
The plant is meant to replace imported bumpers, dashboards and trim. Ghrieb also set a date after which carmakers may no longer import plastic parts it can produce.
A seized factory returns to work in Tissemsilt
The plant is called General Plastic Injection, or GPI. It sits in the Sidi Mansour industrial zone of Khemisti, in west-central Algeria.
It covers 107,361 square metres, of which 18,000 are built up. Figures presented at the opening put output at 251,000 parts a year, enough for nearly 200,000 vehicles.
The prime minister’s office puts capacity at 30,000 tonnes of plastic a year. GPI belongs to Algeria Chemical Specialities (ACS), a state holding company that groups public chemical firms.
ACS values the project at 5 billion dinars (about US$37 million). Of that, 4 billion dinars (about US$30 million) is the value of recovered assets.
The other 1 billion dinars (about US$7.5 million) went mainly on new painting and assembly lines. Dollar figures use 133.8 Algerian dinars per US dollar, the open.er-api.com rate on 27 September 2026.
Organisers announced 300 direct jobs and 500 indirect jobs. It will also supply makers of appliances, cables, medical devices, packaging, drones and road signs, according to APS, the state news agency.
A deadline for imported parts
At the opening, Ghrieb set 31 December 2026 as the last day for importing plastic car parts that can be made locally. From early 2027, licensed carmakers in Algeria must buy those parts from GPI.
“No plastic part for vehicle assembly will be imported if it can be made in this factory,” he said, TSA reported. He added that the moulds for those parts must be at the plant before the end of the year.
Supplies will follow a set specifications document, Algerian Radio reported. Ghrieb said the same rule would apply to metal body parts from a stamping plant project in Batna, launched in April.
A tycoon’s plant, now state property
GPI was formerly Plastic Algeria Components (PAC), part of the car business of Mahieddine Tahkout. PAC was developed from 2017, when his group assembled Hyundai cars in Tiaret.
Tahkout was later given a long prison sentence in a corruption case, and the company was confiscated. Its assets passed to ACS in January 2026, and the firm was renamed.
More factories seized in anti-corruption cases will be restarted soon, Ghrieb said, Algerian Radio reported on 25 September. He launched both the Tissemsilt and Batna projects under that policy in April.
Authorities want a supplier network of state firms and joint ventures with foreign partners, Ecofin Agency reported. In March 2025, state firm Anabib agreed a joint venture with China’s Auto Lumiar to make headlights and bumpers.
Why Algeria wants local parts
Algeria earns most of its export income from oil and gas and imports much of what it consumes. Building a car industry is one of the government’s main diversification goals.
Stellantis, the maker of Fiat, and Chinese groups BAIC and JAC Motors already assemble vehicles in the country. Plants for China’s Chery, Italy’s Iveco and South Korea’s Hyundai are nearing completion.
Carmakers get tax breaks on imported inputs and cheaper land. In return, local content must reach at least 10% by the end of year two and 40% by year five.
Carmakers including Volkswagen and Kia have pulled out in recent years, partly over weak local sourcing. A thin base of local suppliers made local-content targets hard to meet.
This echoes the themes covered in Africa: The New Scramble, where states seek a bigger share of global supply chains. Algeria is using access to its market to pull parts production onshore.
What it means for the auto industry
Carmakers have about three months to move moulds and orders to Tissemsilt. After 31 December, imports of the affected parts are due to stop.
The plant’s stated capacity covers nearly 200,000 vehicles a year. Whether its quality, prices and delivery times can match imports is still untested.
For Tissemsilt, the announced 300 direct and 500 indirect jobs would be a notable boost. The plant should also create demand for transport, maintenance and packaging services, the daily Horizons reported.
What to watch next
The key date is 31 December 2026. How strictly Algeria enforces the import stop will decide whether carmakers truly switch suppliers.
Officials put the plant’s own local integration rate at 40% in a first phase, with a target of 70%. Progress toward that goal will show how much of each part is really made in Algeria.
Watch too whether more seized factories restart, as Ghrieb has promised. The Batna stamping plant is the next test of the same model for car bodies.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the new Algeria plastic components factory?
It is General Plastic Injection (GPI), a state-owned plant in Tissemsilt province opened on 24 September 2026. It can make 251,000 plastic parts a year, enough for nearly 200,000 vehicles.
When must carmakers in Algeria use locally made plastic parts?
Prime Minister Sifi Ghrieb set 31 December 2026 as the deadline for importing plastic car parts that can be made locally. From early 2027, licensed carmakers must buy those parts from GPI.
Who owned the factory before?
It was Plastic Algeria Components, part of businessman Mahieddine Tahkout’s car group. It was confiscated after his corruption conviction and handed to the state holding company ACS in January 2026.
