In the North African country where the Mediterranean and Atlantic meet, a high-speed railway connecting Kenitra and Marrakesh is quietly changing Morocco's transportation map. Recently, the Moroccan National Railway Company officially announced the pre qualification results of 24 new high-speed railway station construction projects, and pre selected 10 construction engineering enterprises from 19 bidding companies. It is worth noting that the consortium composed of China Overseas Engineering Co., Ltd. and China Railway Group Limited has successfully been shortlisted, becoming the only foreign enterprise combination in the pre selection list. This marks another important recognition of Chinese infrastructure enterprises in the major infrastructure field in North Africa.

Ten shortlisted companies after strict screening: coexistence of local giants and Chinese enterprise consortia

After rigorous technical and qualification evaluations, the Moroccan National Railway Company has finally identified 10 shortlisted companies. This includes five leading local construction companies in Morocco, namely TGCC Group, Jet Contracting Company, Moroccan General Civil Engineering Company, Sogia Morocco Company, and Engineering Management Services Company, as well as four consortia: Urbajek/Sapareto Consortium, EMB/Somasane Consortium, Bimolo Consortium, and the highly anticipated China Overseas Engineering Corporation/China Railway Group Corporation Consortium. This bidding process started on October 27, 2025 and ended at 9:00 am on November 20, attracting the attention of numerous international and local construction companies.

24 stations and supporting facilities: building a complete high-speed rail operation network

The 24 newly built stations covered by this tender will all be connected to the future Kenitra Marrakesh high-speed railway line, forming a high-speed railway network that runs through the important economic region of Morocco. The first batch of planned and constructed 12 stations includes transportation hubs such as Hassan II Stadium Station, Casablanca South Station, Marrakesh Ghariz Station, Casablanca Airport Station, Rabat Sar é Airport Station, etc; The remaining 12 stations are distributed in emerging development areas such as Sidi Bellnousi Station, Ain Sebaa Station, Haiya Mohammadi Station, Casablanca New Medina Station, etc. In addition to the main construction of the station, the project also plans to build a technology center in Marrakesh, Nouvelle and Fez, as well as maintenance stations in nine strategic locations including Skirat, Mohammadier College, and Casablanca Central Station, to establish a comprehensive high-speed rail operation and support system.

The market logic behind high standard bidding and opportunities for Chinese enterprises

This bidding has put forward quite high requirements for the performance and experience of bidding enterprises, and has been evaluated by industry insiders as having a "high threshold". Morocco has always adhered to the principles of prioritizing local development and resource protection in large-scale infrastructure construction projects, which reflects both the protection of national interests and the country's mature considerations in the field of infrastructure construction. As a trade hub in the Maghreb region throughout history, Morocco has developed a tradition of being adept at trade routes and balancing interests, which requires foreign companies not only to possess world-class technological strength, but also to have a deep understanding of local business culture and cooperation models. Although Chinese infrastructure companies are known as the "infrastructure maniacs" globally, they still need to demonstrate sufficient flexibility and adaptability in adapting to Morocco's unique bidding mechanism, localization requirements, and complex interest coordination. Keywords: construction news, engineering information platform

The successful inclusion of the Chinese consortium in the preliminary selection list not only demonstrates the technological strength and rich experience of Chinese enterprises in high-speed rail construction, but also opens a new door for the Chinese infrastructure industry to deeply participate in major infrastructure projects in North Africa. With the gradual expansion of Morocco's high-speed rail network, this project will become an important touchstone for China Morocco infrastructure cooperation, testing the comprehensive ability of Chinese enterprises to translate technological advantages into actual project results in overseas markets, including cross-cultural communication, localization integration, and long-term operation and maintenance in multiple dimensions. In the future, the implementation progress of this project will provide valuable practical experience for China Africa infrastructure cooperation. Editor/Yang Beihua