Morocco gets another Indian defense factory, this time MKU

Indian defense company MKU plans to build a factory in Morocco to produce body armor, ballistic helmets and electro-optical sensors, and to use the site as its base for exports to the rest of Africa.

MKU said the facility will be located in the SGZID zone in Nouasser, south of Casablanca. The company has not disclosed the plant’s size, the amount of the investment, the number of jobs or when production will start, saying those details will be announced later.

The factory will build products from MKU’s two main lines. Netro Optronics makes multi-sensor electro-optical systems used for surveillance, reconnaissance and target acquisition. Kavro Protection covers body armor, ballistic helmets, shields and armor kits for vehicles and other platforms. MKU did not say which specific products will be made in Morocco or how much of their content will be sourced locally.

The company already has a track record with the Moroccan military. Over the past five years, MKU has supplied optronics and personal protection equipment to Morocco’s Royal Armed Forces, and it says local production will cut delivery times, make it easier to adapt products to new requirements and put after-sales support inside the country. MKU said the plant will also train Moroccan engineers and technicians and transfer production know-how to local staff.

“Five years of working with Morocco have shown us the calibre of its institutions and its people. This factory turns that relationship into a long-term commitment, and it will be a cornerstone of our international growth strategy,” said Karan Gupta, vice president of international sales at MKU.

MKU says its equipment is used by more than 230 forces in over 100 countries. The company runs manufacturing and operational sites in India, Brazil, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates and has a European research center in Germany. Products from the Moroccan plant will be offered to forces across Africa and Europe, according to the company.

MKU would be the second Indian defense manufacturer to set up production in Morocco. Tata Advanced Systems opened a plant in Berrechid, near Casablanca, in September 2025 to build its WhAP 8×8 wheeled armored vehicle, the first overseas defense factory by a private Indian company. The Royal Moroccan Army received its first locally produced WhAP vehicles from that plant early this year.

Morocco has been working to build a domestic defense industry and cut its reliance on imports, including through legislation that allows foreign companies to manufacture weapons and military equipment in the country under government license. Nouasser, home to Casablanca’s Mohammed V International Airport, already hosts a cluster of aerospace manufacturers.