Morocco has officially opened the Tanger Med 2 port becoming the largest port in Africa and one of the 20 largest ports in the world.
The new port is the third phase of development of the Tanger Med port complex, alongside Tanger Med 1 container terminals and the passengers and ro-ro terminal.
It corresponds to public investment in infrastructures of €1.3B with more than 4,600m of breakwaters and 2,800m of berthing space.
Declared open on Friday, the port will be operated by Maersk’s APM Terminals, which also invested $800m in its construction.
he construction of the state-of-the-art APM Terminals MedPort Tangier facility took two years and a total investment of USD 800m. This new transshipment terminal is designed, constructed and operated by APM Terminals, and will join existing hub facilities servicing Maersk and its partners.
Built utilizing the latest technology, the terminal is set to be one of the most efficient and safest in the world.
Morten Engelstoft, chief executive Officer of APM, commented: “APM Terminals has a long-term relationship with Morocco and we are proud to be operating the second container terminal in the Tanger Med Port complex. APM Terminals MedPort Tangier is a key junction in our global network allowing us to serve our customers better and further facilitate global trade.”
With this new capacity, Morocco is establishing itself as one of the most important transshipment locations in the world. Tanger Med Port is already ranked as the leading African port and is amongst the world’s top 50 container ports due to its prime location along key trade lanes and increasing cargo flows, to and from Africa.
The new facility will support Tanger Med Port to increase its annual throughput capacity to nine million TEUs, helping to improve Moroccan connectivity and further support global trade.
Morocco has seen GDP growth of 4.1% and has a positive outlook for containerized imports and exports with significant growth expected in the years to come. Approximately 200 cargo vessels pass through the Strait of Gibraltar daily, with major liner services linking Asia, Europe, the Americas and Africa.
With a quay length of 1,200 meters and a draft of 16 to 18 metres, APM Terminals MedPort Tangier is able to facilitate the largest vessels.
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