What's behind China's deepening engagement with Morocco?
Morocco is becoming increasingly attractive to Chinese investors for a variety of reasons.
Major Chinese infrastructure firm Railway Shanhaiguan Bridge and leading German railway technology company Vossloh Cogifer won contracts worth $56.2 million earlier this month to supply critical components for Morocco’s high-speed rail expansion.
After launching Africa’s fastest train, Al-Boraq — capable of speeds of up to 300 kilometers per hour — in November 2018, the Moroccan government has expressed its desire to expand its bullet-train network, which is currently 323 kilometers long. According to Morocco’s national railway operator, ONCF, the contracted upgrades will support the Kenitra-Marrakech line, one of the nation’s most vital transport corridors.
Meanwhile, the China Railway Design Corporation has started conducting preliminary draft studies for the construction of Morocco’s second high-speed rail line planned to connect Casablanca and Agadir.
Zeeshan Shah, an analyst at FINRA in Washington, told Al-Monitor that the kingdom’s high-speed railway expansion is significant for several reasons.
