The Spanish government has approved a loan of around MAD7.8 billion, equivalent to more than €750 million, in exchange for Moroccan railway awarding multiple contracts to Spanish train manufacturer CAF, Spanish news reported.
This move comes as Spain aims to secure a contract to supply trains for Morocco’s developing railway network after losing the bid for the country’s high-speed rail project to France.
The same source indicated that the loan was approved on Tuesday by Spain’s Council of Ministers under favorable terms through the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
The loan, charged to the Fund for the Internationalization of Enterprises (FIEM), will be granted to Morocco’s Office National des Chemins de Fer (ONCF) and the Ministry of Economy and Finance to finance the supply of up to 40 intercity trains.
It highlighted that ONCF may soon give the green light for the Basque-based CAF to secure the contract. Several batches of trains are still up for grabs, including intercity trains, trains for the RER-TNR network, and the RER-Métropolitain service.
This comes after Moroccan railway authorities eliminated Spain’s Talgo, France’s Alstom, and China’s CRRC Zhuzhou Locomotive Co. in the first phase of bidding for a contract to supply 150 trains. The only remaining competitors are Spain’s CAF and South Korea’s Hyundai Rotem.
The Spanish media mentioned that the full contract involves the purchase of 168 trains, including intercity, rapid suburban, and regional express trains, and 18 high-speed trains, with an overall budget of around €1.8 billion.
French manufacturer Alstom already won the contract for 18 high-speed trains but is no longer bidding on the remaining 40 intercity trains, 60 rapid shuttle trains (TNR), and 50 regional express trains (RER), explained the same source.
ONCF’s contract requires train suppliers to provide 20-year maintenance and meet a local integration rate based on the number of trains they supply. After finalizing the terms, the Moroccan company will launch a call for tenders for the selected manufacturers to submit their best offers within a month.
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