Autoblog

Imagine all the exotic locals where international motor racing has taken place over the course of modern history and Morocco might not show up on your radar. But back in the era of Casablanca, the North African country, just across the Straight of Gibraltar from Europe, hosted the Moroccan Grand Prix, starting with a touring car race in 1925 and culminating with an F1 grand prix in 1958 won by (spoiler alert!) Stirling Moss. Now, after fifty years have passed, the racing scene is set to return to Morocco for a World Touring Car Championship race in Marrakech.

Instead of using the old Ain-Diab circuit, construction of the new street circuit is scheduled to begin later this month. Race organizers expect to draw a crowd of 100,000 fans when the race kicks off on May 1, 2009, but after the cancellation of the nearby Dakar Rally due to terrorist threats from Al-Qaeda, we would hope that race organizers will take serious security precautions.

[Source: autosport, WTCC]

Renault-Nissan president Carlos Ghosn is arguably one of the most effective automotive industry executives, and having just embarked upon a tour of the Middle East, may prove to be more effective than the endless stream of government and military envoys parading in and out of sand-swept capitals.

Ghosn flew to Israel, where he met with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and President Shimon Peres and announced a project to launch an electric vehicle network in the country's burgeoning and overcrowded Mediterranean metropolis of Tel Aviv. The project, called "Better Place", is being led by former SAP executive Shai Agassi (seen shaking hands with Ghosn above), and is financially supported by Israel Corp, the holding company that controls shipping giant Zim and recently embarked upon an automotive joint venture in China. (The Knesset, Israel's parliament that usually has to support any such ventures itself financially, has paved the way by preparing supportive legislation.) Renault will develop the vehicles, which are projected to have a 160-km range on the highway, or 100 in the city, hit 100km/h (62mph) in 13 seconds and top out at 110 km/h. The cars are expected to hit the shuk (that's "market" in Hebrew and Arabic) in 2011.

While he was at it, Ghosn hopped over to Morocco to announce the construction of a new plant for Renault and Nissan. (Yes, we know Morocco is not technically part of the Middle East, but Northern Africa is often grouped together with it. So please don't shoot us.) The new factory in Tangiers will have a capacity of 400,000 vehicles per year and will employ 6,000 directly and 30,000 indirectly. Renault will use the facility to build cars on the cost-effective Dacia Logan platform, while Nissan will manufacture light commercial vehicles there, as well.

[Source: Reuters, Photo by DAVID FURST/AFP/Getty]