Morocco to start operating Nador West Med port in Q4 2026

RABAT - Morocco will start operating its second Mediterranean deepwater port, Nador West Med, in the fourth quarter of this year as it seeks to replicate the success of Tanger Med, the Mediterranean and Africa's largest port, the royal palace said on Wednesday.

The $5.6 billion facility will open with an annual capacity of 5 million containers, expandable to 12 million, the palace said after a meeting chaired by King Mohammed VI. The new facility includes 5.4 km of breakwaters, 4 km of quays and four power stations, it said.

It was designed to host Morocco's first liquefied natural gas terminal, with an annual capacity of 5 billion cubic metres, along with a hydrocarbons terminal. The project also provides 700 hectares for industrial and logistics activity, which has already attracted 20 billion dirhams in private investment, it said.

At startup, the port will host an annual capacity of 5 million containers and 35 million tonnes of liquid and solid bulk cargo. Eventually, the additional annual development potential is 12 million containers and 15 million tonnes of liquid bulk cargo.

Linked to the port complex, the project also provides for the deployment of new activity zones spanning an area of 700 hectares in a first phase, which have already recorded the initial installations of international operators.

Private investments in the new port and industrial complex, amounting so far to a total of MAD 20 billion, reflect the trust that leading international maritime and industrial operators place in Morocco.

At the close of the meeting, His Majesty the King, may God assist Him, issued His High Instructions to the various stakeholders to take all the necessary measures to ensure that the project is launched under the best conditions, and to proceed with the rapid implementation of specific training programs in order to support investors, facilitate youth integration, and enhance their employability.

The Sovereign also issued His High Instructions to ensure that the impact of these investments benefits all the provinces that are part of the port’s influence zone, to support the project with territorial upgrading programs in order to improve the region’s quality of life, and to implement a multidimensional action plan that preserves the future development of the project.