The Spanish railway construction company Talgo, founded in 1942, has reportedly set its sights on Morocco as a potential market for new contracts in the next ten years.
The Shereef kingdom aims to improve its rail network in anticipation of the football World Cup in 2030. Sources at Las Rozas in Madrid, the group’s headquarters, reveal that Talgo is particularly interested in the opportunity to provide trains for the different competitions that Morocco wishes to organize.
Morocco has already budgeted a total amount of 1.167 billion euros (12.770 million dirhams) for the acquisition of new rolling stock by 2026, thus opening the door to a possible large order of high-speed trains. speed. A first call for tenders, valued at 839 million euros and aimed at the purchase of trains intended for suburban and regional services, is about to be launched.
Talgo hopes to highlight two of its flagship products: the Avril high-speed train (Alta Velocidad Rueda Independiente Ligero) and the EMU suburban and regional light train, capable of reaching a speed of 160 kilometers per hour. The Avril train has just received final authorization to operate on Spanish tracks, a crucial step forward that will allow it to enter service with Renfe next spring. National and international operators, as well as foreign countries, are closely monitoring its performance for future orders.
The support of the Spanish government is a considerable asset for Talgo. Earlier this year, Spain signed a memorandum of understanding with Morocco to support the construction of large-scale infrastructure, including the expansion of the high-speed network. In addition, the tripartite candidacy between Spain, Portugal, and Morocco for the World Cup could lead to commitments in the form of investments in both countries.
Moroccan public operator ONCF (Office National des Chemins de Fer) plans to launch a public call for tenders worth 839 million euros to purchase up to 120 new trains in the country’s railway network. Spanish companies like Talgo and CAF, as well as Alstom and seven other companies from around the world, including Chinese and Japanese companies, have expressed interest in this competition.
The contract winner will have to establish a factory in Morocco to build these units using local labor. These new trains will replace around fifty units at the end of their useful life and must be capable of reaching speeds close to 200 kilometers per hour, which will considerably increase the operational capacity of the Moroccan network.
Currently, Morocco has only one operational high-speed line between Tangier and Casablanca, a project which cost 2.8 billion euros. The Moroccan government’s plan includes the construction of an additional 1,300 kilometers of high-speed line to extend the existing line (Al Boraq) to Marrakech and Agadir, as well as the creation of a new east-west link between Oujda and Rabat.
Additionally, it plans to expand the conventional rail network by another 3,800 kilometers to connect more cities (from 23 to 43) and serve a greater share of the population (from 51% to 86%). However, these projects require significant funding, estimated at 35 billion euros by 2040. The Moroccan government has already allocated 130 million euros for the first studies until 2027.
France, with its historic relationship with Morocco, played a major role in the launch of the first high-speed line in 2018. However, current diplomatic tensions between the two countries have led SNCF, the French public operator, not to submit a bid for the design of the new high-speed line. Despite these political difficulties, Alstom announced an investment of 16 million euros in July to create a new production plant in Morocco, which could be a prelude to its participation in the ONCF call for tenders.
