Morocco's Nador West Med Port to Start Up Ahead of Schedule

 

Morocco’s much awaited transshipment hub, Nador West Med Port, could be opened earlier than expected. In a budget presentation in Morocco’s parliament last week, Equipment and Water Minister Nizar Baraka revealed that the port is fully ready. The minister added that the port complex could begin operations by end of 2026, almost a year earlier than the scheduled opening time in 2027.

The government has now shifted focus to building port access roads and improving connectivity to other regions in Morocco. According to the Minister, the plan is to establish connections to major towns in northern Morocco including Fès, Taourirt and Oujda.

Terminal operators are also readying for the port’s opening. Last month, Morocco’s Marsa Maroc and CMA Terminals (a subsidiary of CMA CGM) finalized a joint partnership for the concession of the West Terminal at the Port of Nador West Med. MSC Group - through its subsidiary Terminal Investment Limited (TIL) - has also signed an agreement with Marsa Maroc for the concession of the second container terminal at Nador West.

With Nador West Med modeled on the success of Tanger Med port, it is expected to further disrupt container shipping market in the Mediterranean region. In its first phase, Nador Port will have capacity to handle 1.8 million TEU per year, which will rise to around 5.5 million TEU in the subsequent phases. This places the port in direct competition with established European transshipment ports such as Algeciras (which handled 4.7 million TEU in 2024) and Valencia (5.5 million TEU in 2024).

In fact, there have been concerns in Spain that emerging hubs such as Nador West Med could exacerbate the decline of Port of Algeciras. The argument is that strict environmental regulations in Europe create competitive disadvantages for Spanish ports compared to their Moroccan neighbors in the Mediterranean.

Spain’s State Ports agency has in the past urged for regulatory balance in Europe, warning of a possible decrease in shipping traffic in favor of Morocco. The Port Authority of the Bay of Algeciras estimates that its port could lose almost 60 percent of its transshipment volume to Tanger Med under a scenario of strict environmental regulations.