Morocco’s state-owned rail operator, the National Office of Moroccan Railways (ONCF) has awarded French group NGE a $110 million contract to upgrade a section of the Kenitra-Marrakesh railway line, which is part of the Morocco’s $14.3 billion high-speed rail development plan.
NGE, through its subsidiaries TSO, TSO Catenaires and NGE Maroc, will overhaul the existing rail line from the city of Casablanca to the adjacent city of Nouaceur, while the ONCF moves forward to expand the high-speed rail line that connects Tangier to the north of the country. in Kenitra until an eventual link with the country’s popular tourist destination of Marrakesh.
The ONCF completed the construction of a 200 km high-speed line between Tangier and Kenitra in 2015 after four years of work, the first high-speed rail line in Africa. The project substantially reduced the travel time between Tangier and Marrakech, although only part of this route qualifies as high-speed rail.
The completion of the planned national high-speed line plan, linking Morocco’s major cities of Tangier, Marrakech, Casablanca and Rabat, is just one part of the country’s $37 billion Rail Morocco 2040 Plan. This effort consists of $9.29 billion to add 1,600 km to the conventional rail network, $14.31 billion to build 1,100 km of high-speed rail, and $3.2 billion to upgrade at least 1,610 km of existing rail.
Map courtesy ONCFNGE President Jean Bernadet says the Kenitra-Marrakech project will help Morocco “address the challenges of the green transition, especially through the development of low-carbon mobility infrastructure.”
The ONCF has chosen a Franco-Moroccan consortium led by Egis, with Systra and Novec, as the project management assistance contractor for the 430 kilometer Kenitra-Marrakesh high-speed line to be completed by 2029 before of the 2030 World Cup which will be jointly hosted by Morocco, Spain and Portugal.
The Kenitra-Marrakech line will serve the five railway stations of Casa Sudi, Sidi Maarouf, Bouskoura, Nou Nouaceur and Mohammed V International Airport. The train speed has been designed for 320 km per hour in the distance of 430 km, with ONCF saying the project will boost Morocco’s drive to decarbonise the transport sector by investing in low-carbon transport modes.
Lot 3 of the NGE contract project involves the design and renovation of the existing line by removing existing tracks and installing new ones, the supply and installation of the line’s catenary system. The consortium will also carry out other tasks such as earthmoving, civil engineering, drainage, construction of platforms and renovation of the road system.
Morocco currently has one 2,300 km rail network, including 200 km of high-speed rail, with at least 120 passenger stations and 15 freight stations.
The NGE Group’s entry into Morocco’s high-speed rail development plan further increases the number of foreign companies from France and China participating in the broader Rail Morocco 2040 plan.
The development of Morocco’s high-speed railway program has seen the ONCF award contracts to Chinese companies China Railways Number 4 Engineering Group, Shandong Hi-Speed Group, China Overseas Engineering Corporation.
