His Majesty King Mohammed VI chaired the launch ceremony on Thursday at the Rabat-Agdal railway station for the construction works of the Kenitra-Marrakech high-speed rail line (LGV), spanning approximately 430 km.
Reflecting the Royal vision for sustainable national development and low-carbon mass mobility, this structured project involves a budget of 53 billion MAD for the infrastructure itself. It is part of a broader 96 billion MAD investment program that also encompasses the acquisition of 168 new trains for 29 billion MAD and performance-maintenance allocations of 14 billion MAD.
Key project highlights and impacts include:
Travel Time Reductions: Tangier to Rabat will take 1 hour; Tangier to Casablanca will take 1 hour and 40 minutes; and Tangier to Marrakech will take 2 hours and 40 minutes (saving over two hours). Additionally, Rabat will connect to Casablanca Mohammed Faisal/International Airport in 35 minutes, alongside a connection to the new Benslimane stadium. A Fez-to-Marrakech high-speed service will take 3 hours and 40 minutes.
Urban Commuter Networks: Freeing up capacity on traditional networks will allow the development of dedicated urban commuter train services across Rabat, Casablanca, and Marrakech.
Fleet Modernization: The 168 new trains comprise 18 high-speed trainsets, 40 intercity trains, 60 regional rapid shuttles (TNR), and 50 urban mass transit trains, acquired through partnerships with Alstom (France), CAF (Spain), and Hyundai Rotem (South Korea).
Industrial Ecosystem: The program features a local manufacturing unit with over 40% local integration, creating thousands of direct and indirect jobs over a ten-year period.
His Majesty King Mohammed VI stated that Morocco is entering a new phase focused on strengthening national sovereignty, supporting economic recovery, and implementing the New Development Model. He also called on the government and Parliament to fully assume their responsibilities.
The United Nations praised His Majesty King Mohammed VI’s forward-looking vision for future generations, highlighting the importance of collective action to build a human-centered and sustainable development model. It also noted that this vision has become even more relevant in light of the challenges exposed by the Covid-19 pandemic, particularly social inequalities and the spread of misinformation.
The Council of the League of Arab States praised the efforts of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, Chairman of the Al-Quds Committee, to protect Al-Quds Al-Sharif and support the resilience of the Palestinian people. It also highlighted the fieldwork of the Bayt Mal Al-Quds Agency in preserving the city’s Arab and Islamic identity.
