Manufacturing Saudi and Morocco vie for lead in Mena EV race Two clear frontrunners in the global electric vehicle race have emerged in the Middle East and North Africa region. Both Saudi Arabia and Morocco have accelerated efforts to develop their EV capabilities in 2023, with a series of multi-million-dollar investments and partnership deals. The two kingdoms see the EV industry as central to achieving economic […] December 22, 2023
Economy Egypt to receive half EBRD regional funding in 2024 Egypt will receive the lion’s share of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development’s regional funding in 2024, having accounted for about 55 percent of its funds this year, the regional head of the EBRD has told AGBI. “Egypt is by far our largest country of operation in the region and will account for more […] December 21, 2023
Aviation Ryanair to begin domestic flights in Morocco in 2024 Irish low-cost carrier Ryanair will open domestic flights across Morocco from next summer as part of its $1.4 billion investment in the North African country. Ryanair will be the third airline to operate flights in Morocco, following national carrier Royal Air Moroc and the UAE’s Air Arabia. The extra commitment to Ryanair’s summer programme means […] December 13, 2023
Trade UAE and Morocco train sights on further trade with rail deal Leaders from the UAE and Morocco have signed a declaration aimed at boosting bilateral trade, including a commitment to invest in high-speed trains in the North African country. President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and King Mohammed VI met during a state visit to Abu Dhabi last week. No specifics were disclosed about the […] December 12, 2023
Renewable Energy Morocco reveals strategy to speed up energy transition Morocco is accelerating plans to add 9 gigawatts to its electricity generation capacity – enough power for nearly 8 million homes – with 7GW coming from renewables. But the country will need to discover or import more gas as it bets on creating a new hydrogen economy, according to Leila Benali, its minister of energy […] December 11, 2023
Agriculture UAE companies to develop irrigation project in Morocco Dubai-based Metito Utilities and Tahliya Group, a UAE-based infrastructure company in Africa, have signed an agreement to develop an irrigation project using desalinated water in Morocco. The desalination projects will be powered by renewable energy, the companies said in a statement released during the Cop28 climate summit taking place in Dubai. No financial details on […] December 6, 2023
Saudi schools ‘doing better at maths but still lagging behind’ Saudi Arabia’s schools have improved in the past few years, but are still below the international average and a long way behind the best performers, according to the OECD. Teenagers from 81 countries were tested for the OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa), which published its 2022 report on Tuesday. The tests measured the […] December 5, 2023
EXCLUSIVE Sustainability Opec Fund piles up financing for wheat, wind and water The Opec Fund for International Development is on track to meet its pledges to increase grants and loans to climate-related projects, its Middle East and North Africa head has told AGBI. Musab Alomar, the fund’s director of public sector operations for Mena, said climate financing made up 33 percent of all Opec Fund approvals in […] November 30, 2023
Renewable Energy TotalEnergies invests $25m in Xlinks TotalEnergies announced on Wednesday that it has invested £20 million ($25.4 million) to acquire a minority stake in Xlinks, the company overseeing the £22 billion Morocco-UK renewables project. The French oil and gas major joins fellow investors Octopus Energy and Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (Taqa), the UAE’s largest power producer, which gave a substantial […] November 29, 2023
Renewable Energy Moroccan-French venture to build $2bn green hydrogen plant Morocco-headquartered Falcon Capital Dakhla and France’s HDF Energy have signed a deal to build a $2 billion green hydrogen production plant in the Moroccan coastal region of Dakhla. The White Dunes project seeks to produce 10 gigawatts (GW) in wind energy, 7 GW in photovoltaic energy and 8 GW in electrolysis. “We have devoted nearly […] November 19, 2023
Analysis Industry Future is rosy for Mena phosphate producers With Morocco and Saudi Arabia now holding the bulk of the world’s high-quality, accessible phosphate rock reserves, the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region is a major centre for the phosphate mining industry’s future growth, analysts say. Morocco alone holds around 70 percent of the world’s total reserves of phosphate rock, the raw material […] November 17, 2023
EXCLUSIVE Renewable Energy Download our exclusive report on the Gulf’s path to net zero As the world shifts towards cleaner sources of energy, the GCC’s oil and gas-producing nations find themselves faced with the dual threat of environmental and economic crisis. What are they doing about it? In this special report published as the UAE prepares to stage the United Nations’ Cop28 climate change summit, AGBI examines the Gulf’s […] November 8, 2023
Employment Moroccan graduates struggle as unemployment rate soars Almost one-fifth of graduates in Morocco cannot find work in the country as the number of jobless continues to soar. The unemployment rate increased to 13.5 percent in the third quarter of the year compared to the same period last year, according to Morocco’s statistics office, HCP. The total number of unemployed stood at 1.625 […] November 7, 2023
Banking & Finance Morocco signs $280m deals with African Development Bank Morocco has signed three agreements with the African Development Bank (AfDB) worth more than MAD2.9 billion ($280 million). The deals will improve access to healthcare, support increased social security coverage and provide emergency help in the wake of September’s devastating earthquake in Al Haouz, according to an announcement by the government. The first agreement, worth […] October 25, 2023
Sustainability Cop28 and UN unveil $72 billion ocean conservation plan The UN, Cop28 and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) have jointly launched a $72 billion initiative to protect at least 30 percent of the world’s oceans. The Oceans Breakthrough strategy was announced by Razan Al Mubarak, president of the IUCN and one of the UAE’s UN climate change champions for Cop28. As […] October 13, 2023
Manufacturing Chinese cash to supercharge Morocco’s EV battery sector Morocco’s plan to become a centre for electric vehicle manufacturing has received a boost from two Chinese companies, as the kingdom benefits from the cooling relations between Beijing and Washington. CNGR Advanced Material, a Chinese manufacturer of battery components, announced last month that it would join forces with Al Mada, a conglomerate owned by the […] October 10, 2023
Analysis Business of Sport Morocco must now tackle cost of World Cup win Winning the right to co-host the World Cup in 2030 will have Morocco walking an economic tightrope, experts say. Morocco will become only the second African nation to host the event, albeit alongside five other countries spread across three continents. In celebration of the 100th anniversary of the World Cup, the 2030 edition will be […] October 6, 2023
Renewable Energy Budget for Xlinks UK-Morocco energy project rises The Xlinks Morocco-UK renewables project has run over budget by £4 billion ($4.8 billion) but the company is continuing to push ahead with the project, saying that it remains good value for money. “The rising cost is no different to what’s happening everywhere else,” Xlinks’ CEO Simon Morrish told AGBI, highlighting changes in supply chain […] October 4, 2023
Logistics Mena ports among world’s most efficient, says UN Three ports in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region are among the most efficient in the world, according to a widely-watched analysis published by the United Nations last month. It found that in 2022 Salalah in Oman, Khalifa in the UAE, and Tanger Med in Morocco were in the top five positions globally. […] October 4, 2023
Economy Morocco’s economy forecast to grow 3% Morocco’s economy is forecast to grow by 3.1 percent this year, boosted by an improved harvest and increased tourist numbers, according to the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. However, the estimate does not take into account the earthquake that struck at the start of this month in the High Atlas Mountains near Marrakech, which […] September 29, 2023
Finance Moroccan pharma company gets $37m European funding The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is to provide MAD380 million ($37.1 million) in funding to support Morocco’s pharmaceutical private sector. The loan will be given to Dislog Group, a distributor of consumer goods covering more than 70,000 retailers across the country, which is owned by Moroccan conglomerate H&S Holding. Founded in 2005, […] September 26, 2023
Industry LG lithium plant in Morocco to start production in 2026 South Korea’s LG Chem Ltd has entered into partnership with China’s Huayou Group’s subsidiary Youshan to build a joint electric vehicle (EV) battery material plant in Morocco in an effort to diversify its portfolio. The plant, set to start production in 2026, aims to produce 50,000 metric tonnes of lithium-phosphate-iron (LFP) cathode materials annually, enough […] September 25, 2023
