Marruecos será el país anfitrión del Congreso Mundial UIC sobre trenes de alta velocidad
The next UIC World Congress on high-speed trains will be held in 2023 and Morocco will be the host country. The main objective of the Congress, whose motto is "High-speed rail: the right speed for our planet", is to discuss the role of this industry in the face of future challenges such as climate change. This high-level meeting will also devote time to other issues such as connectivity between countries by rail and the advancement and sustainable development of the industry. Mohamed Rabie Khilie, the director general of the UIC, said in a press release that this Congress "is an optimal framework to maximise the added value of railways for the community and share the latest technological developments", adding that "the potential of high-speed rail solutions adapted to the growth of sustainable mobility on a global scale is far from exhausted".
The event will be attended by key decision-makers from the rail industry, as well as representatives of leading companies in this sector, transport authorities, representatives of financial institutions, experts and researchers. They will meet at the Palais des Congrès in Marrakech from 7 to 10 March 2023. Future forecasts suggest that in the next 30 years high-speed lines will cover twice as much distance as they do today, which is why the presence of this sector in Africa is of vital importance for the countries of this continent. However, new industrial, technical and financial challenges are expected to hinder this progress
The high cost of the investments required to create and improve the complex infrastructure of the railway sector is the main obstacle to this process of creating new tracks, in addition to the technical complexity of these projects. To address these problems, ONFC, the Moroccan railway operator, has allocated a budget of 7.7 billion dirhams, or approximately $771 million, for a plan that will be spread over the next two years to upgrade the railway network's facilities and modernise passenger train stations, in addition to regularising the financial situation of the office, which needs to recover from the huge losses suffered due to the closure during the COVID-19 pandemic that caused losses of up to 200%.
As a first step in this comprehensive overhaul of rail services in Morocco, the bureau announced earlier this year the extension of the Casablanca-Tangier high-speed line, which will pass through Marrakech and end its route in Agadir. According to Morocco World News, the project will cost 75 billion dirhams ($7.5 billion) and is classified by the Alawite kingdom's Minister of Transport and Logistics, Mohamed Abdeljalil, as a vital project for improving the country's infrastructure and enhancing its economy.
Morocco's high-speed line, called TGB Al-Boraq, is the first high-speed line to be inaugurated on the African continent, and the sixth fastest in the world. In just over two hours it connects the cities of Tangier and Casablanca with a commercial stop in Kenitra and Rabat Agdal. The trains, which have a capacity of 512 seats, depart at all times from both terminals and make their way along the Atlantic coast.