Morocco will open two major deepwater ports in the coming years as part of a sweeping infrastructure drive aimed at strengthening its role as a strategic gateway between Africa and Europe, officials said.
Equipment and Water Minister Nizar Baraka told parliament that the Nador West Med port on the Mediterranean coast would begin operations in late 2026, while the Dakhla Atlantique port on the Atlantic seaboard is expected to come online in 2028.
The projects mark the latest phase of Morocco’s rapid port expansion, following the success of Tanger Med now one of the world’s top transshipment hubs and Jorf Lasfar on the Atlantic coast.
Baraka said construction at Nador West Med was in its final stages. The port will include 800 hectares of industrial zones, expanding ultimately to 5,000 hectares larger than Tanger Med’s industrial footprint and will host Morocco’s first liquefied natural gas terminal through a floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU).
The FSRU is part of a national programme worth MAD 9.5 billion (US$954 million) aimed at securing long-term gas supplies and helping Morocco shift away from coal toward natural gas and renewables. More than 80 international operators have expressed interest in the facility.
Morocco has already secured operational agreements with major shipping companies, including a convention with CMA CGM guaranteeing a flow of three million containers a year. Baraka stressed the project must benefit regions beyond Nador and Driouch, and announced transport upgrades including a new highway between Guercif and Nador and improved links to Al Hoceima, Oujda, Saidia and Fez.
Backed by over €300 million (US$326 million) in European financing, Nador West Med is designed to replicate Tanger Med’s highly successful model. Positioned directly on East–West maritime routes, it is expected to handle 3.5 to 5.5 million containers annually potentially matching Spain’s Algeciras port.
Spain’s port sector has voiced concern over the rise of Moroccan competition. Tanger Med already handles more than twice Algeciras’ volume, and Nador West Med is widely viewed as another challenge to Spanish dominance in the western Mediterranean.
Further south, Morocco is pushing ahead with the Dakhla Atlantique port, a flagship project in the Western Sahara region. The port is part of a broader geopolitical and economic strategy aligned with UN Resolution 2797, which reaffirms that Morocco’s autonomy plan provides the reference framework for future negotiations over the territory.
Foreign interest has grown sharply, led by France and the United States, alongside an increase in Spanish business missions. A delegation from the Canary Islands visited Dakhla in early December to explore investment opportunities another sign of improved Morocco–Spain cooperation since Madrid endorsed the autonomy plan in 2022.
The Dakhla Atlantique project, estimated at MAD 12.4 billion (US$1.24 billion), will span 1,650 hectares and become Morocco’s deepest port at 23 metres. Officials say it will serve as a strategic corridor linking landlocked Sahel countries to global trade routes under King Mohammed VI’s Atlantic Initiative.
Once operational, the port is expected to handle 2.2 million tonnes of goods and 950,000 tonnes of seafood products. Surrounding industrial and agricultural zones will include 1,600 hectares for industrial activities and 5,200 hectares of irrigated farmland supplied by desalination plants. Planned activities range from fishing and shipbuilding to processing industries and green hydrogen exports.
Morocco is also studying the development of a port at Tan-Tan in partnership with green hydrogen investors. “We are conducting studies to decide the appropriate size of the port,” Baraka said.
A model built on Tanger Med’s rise
The expansion builds on the success of Tanger Med, which by 2024 hosted 1,400 companies employing 130,000 people in sectors including automotive, aeronautics, textiles, agriculture and renewable energy. The port-industrial complex has become a major hub for Africa and Europe, combining free zones, logistics platforms and advanced manufacturing clusters.
Morocco’s new deepwater ports aim to cement its position as a regional logistics centre and reinforce its economic diversification strategy at a time when global shipping routes are shifting and competition for maritime traffic is intensifying.
