MOROCCO has become even more important for the EU as a bridge to Africa thanks Tanger Med, the biggest port in Africa and the Med, says Cardiff's EU Reporter.
Located on the Strait of Gibraltar about 40 kilometres east of Tanger, Morocco, Tanger Med 2 was launched on June 28.
The facility will include two new container terminals with a capacity of six million TEU, twice that of Tanger Med 1 which itself was launched in 2003 as a logistics, industrial, commercial and touristic complex.
Tanger Med director Rachid Houari said: 'Fifteen years ago, this area was very poor and underdeveloped but we chose it for its strategic importance, as it is the nearest point from Africa to Europe.
'The initial idea was to build a port with one to three million TEU capacity but we were surprised by our own success as we surpassed our capacity in only six or seven years. That is why we decided to build the new port Tanger Med.'
The new port already has an impressive list of customers. Renault has a dedicated terminal. In 2018, the port handled 351,191 Renault's for export from the Moroccan factories. PSA Peugeot Citroen, which inaugurated its first factory in Morocco on June 20 in Kenitra, will also export through the port this year.
In April, DHL Global Forwarding signed a deal with Tanger Med to set up its new Africa-Europe Logistics Hub in the Tanger Med port.
'The strategic location of Tanger Med presents a huge opportunity for us. Its ability to support multi-modal connectivity, especially its maritime, as well as road connections to Casablanca and south, will allow us to expand and enhance our customer service offering,' said DHL Global Forwarding country manager Christelle Fadel.
Tanger Med is one of the biggest projects of Moroccan King Mohammed VI.
In his inaugurating speech in 2003, King Mohammed VI said: 'We are launching one of the largest economic projects in the history of our country. Morocco is consolidating its anchor in the Euro-Mediterranean area and in the Maghreb and Arab environment.
'It values its position as a trade hub between Europe, Africa, the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, and strengthens at the same time its major role as an active partner in international trade,' he said.
Tanger Med is the 45th out of 500 container ports in the world, where 912 companies operate in automotive, aeronautics, renewable energy, electronics, textiles, agro-food, paramedical, logistics, services sectors.
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Located on the Strait of Gibraltar about 40 kilometres east of Tanger, Morocco, Tanger Med 2 was launched on June 28.
The facility will include two new container terminals with a capacity of six million TEU, twice that of Tanger Med 1 which itself was launched in 2003 as a logistics, industrial, commercial and touristic complex.
Tanger Med director Rachid Houari said: 'Fifteen years ago, this area was very poor and underdeveloped but we chose it for its strategic importance, as it is the nearest point from Africa to Europe.
'The initial idea was to build a port with one to three million TEU capacity but we were surprised by our own success as we surpassed our capacity in only six or seven years. That is why we decided to build the new port Tanger Med.'
The new port already has an impressive list of customers. Renault has a dedicated terminal. In 2018, the port handled 351,191 Renault's for export from the Moroccan factories. PSA Peugeot Citroen, which inaugurated its first factory in Morocco on June 20 in Kenitra, will also export through the port this year.
In April, DHL Global Forwarding signed a deal with Tanger Med to set up its new Africa-Europe Logistics Hub in the Tanger Med port.
'The strategic location of Tanger Med presents a huge opportunity for us. Its ability to support multi-modal connectivity, especially its maritime, as well as road connections to Casablanca and south, will allow us to expand and enhance our customer service offering,' said DHL Global Forwarding country manager Christelle Fadel.
Tanger Med is one of the biggest projects of Moroccan King Mohammed VI.
In his inaugurating speech in 2003, King Mohammed VI said: 'We are launching one of the largest economic projects in the history of our country. Morocco is consolidating its anchor in the Euro-Mediterranean area and in the Maghreb and Arab environment.
'It values its position as a trade hub between Europe, Africa, the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, and strengthens at the same time its major role as an active partner in international trade,' he said.
Tanger Med is the 45th out of 500 container ports in the world, where 912 companies operate in automotive, aeronautics, renewable energy, electronics, textiles, agro-food, paramedical, logistics, services sectors.
WORLD SHIPPING