Nador West Med Port

Nador West Med Portⁱ is a large maritime complex consisting of a new port and a free industrial zone.^{1 2} Located on the Mediterranean coast of Nador city, in north-east region of Morocco,³ it is set to become one of the largest ports in Africa,⁴ as it strategically lies near the main East-West shipping routes for container transport as well as oil and gas products across the Mediterranean region.⁵ The project is part of Morocco’s National Transport Sector and Logistics Development Strategy developed by the Ministry of Equipment, Transport, Logistics and Water.^{ii 6}

The project aims to achieve three primary objectives: contribute to the reduction of regional disparities through strengthening the economic and social development of Oriental Region,⁷ strengthen Morocco’s port services in the Western Mediterranean region to attract part of global shipping activities,⁸ and ensure Morocco’s energy supply by creating a second hub, specifically by expanding the reception and storage capacity in the project area.⁹

To implement the aforementioned objectives, a master plan was proposed that extends over a total area of 2.8 square kilometers,¹⁰ with 1.4 square kilometers consisting of water.¹¹ It includes two major zones: (1) a new deep-water port equipped with significant capacities for the development of an energy pool (handling, packaging, storage of hydrocarbons and derivatives), container transshipment and bulk product processing;¹² and (2) an integrated platform/free trade zone, open to renowned investors, designed to accommodate the globally active companies and supported by the port.¹³ The two zones and their associated activities are as follows:

(1) The port infrastructure features:^{14 15}

• A primary breakwater extending approximately 4,300 meters (comprising 148 caissons over about 3,000 meters and 1,300 meters of rock embankment with concrete accropode Blocksⁱⁱⁱ) and a secondary breakwater or dike of around 1,200 meters (also made of rock and acropods);
• Two containers’ terminals (constructed with concrete decks on piles) with quay lengths of 1,520 meters (TC1) and 600 meters (TC2), expandable by an additional 600 meters, at a depth of -18 meters, along with an adjacent container yard spanning 0.76 square kilometers;
• An oil terminal with three tanker-berths at a depth of -20 m;
• A bulk terminal with a 360 m quay and a depth of -20 m;
• A multi-purpose terminal (-11 m depth) featuring a Ro-Ro berth and a service quay.
  (2) The industrial investment zone includes a 15 square kilometers Free zone and an additional 25 square kilometers area outside the Free Zone designated for commercial and administrative activities.¹⁶

In terms of annual capacity, this infrastructure will facilitate the handling of 3 million containers, with the potential to increase this capacity by an additional 2 million containers, as well as 25 million tons of fuel, 7 million tons of coal, and 3 million tons of various goods.¹⁷

The project is initiated by ‘Nador West Med’, which is public limited liability company that has been created for the construction, development, planning, promotion and management of this industrial port and free trade zone.¹⁸ The master plan was designed and will be implemented by a Consortium of STFA (Türkiye) – SGTM (Morocco) and Jan De Nul group (Belgium).¹⁹ The project is operated by Moroccan container terminal operator Marsa Maroc, after signing an agreement with ‘Nador West Med’ company.²⁰
The project cost is over $1 billion, funded mainly by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD),²¹ the African Development Bank,^{22 23} and Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development.²⁴ The Nador West Med port will be inaugurated in early 2025. The full operation of the port and logistics platform is scheduled for 2027.²⁵