China and Nigeria agreed to build an EV battery factory in the African country at the COP28 climate summit in Dubai.

Photovoltaics specialist Shenzhen LEMI Technology Development Company will invest $150m in the venture. It already has a presence in Nigeria, providing solar power to off-grid communities for the government’s Rural Electrification Project.

The deal was signed with the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) of Nigeria, and was overseen by Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Power and China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment.

REA called the agreement “a pioneer initiative for the Light and Belt Initiative in Africa”.

Another stakeholder in the project is Nigeria’s National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure. It hopes the plant will help Nigeria become a player in the EV industry.

It recently signed agreements in principle with Chinese partners for around $6bn in projects, with a focus on EV and drone production.

REA said the plant would help it reverse engineer Chinese technology and begin factory production of standard parts.