IFC, MIGA, International Banks partner with Morocco’s Tanger Med Port Complex to expand truck and passenger terminal

The International finance Corporation (IFC) and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), both members of the World Bank Group, have partnered with Tanger Med Port Complex, the leading industrial port complex in the Mediterranean, to expand the truck and passenger terminal and strengthen Morocco’s strategic position as a hub for regional and global trade, IFC said in a press release this Monday.

IFC’s loan of up to €197 million (including €47 million provided under IFC’s Managed Co-Lending Portfolio Program) to Tanger Med will be the first sustainability linked loan in Morocco and among the first in the port sector in emerging markets globally. Key performance indicators associated with the loan include gender diversity and renewable energy.

A pool of international banks led by JP Morgan are also supporting the project with a commercial loan of up to €203 million. A non-honoring guarantee from MIGA will cover lenders in the commercial loan facility for a period of up to 15 years. Non-honoring of financial obligations by a state-owned enterprise coverage protects against losses resulting from a state-owned enterprise’s failure to make a payment.

The financing package is expected to increase the port’s truck capacity to more than 1 million units. In 2023 Tanger Med Port Complex handled 477,000 trucks. The project is also expected to create direct jobs, stimulate economic growth, and foster greater investor confidence in Morocco’s infrastructure sector

“Tanger Med plays a pivotal role in facilitating Morocco’s imports and exports. This project will enable the Port Complex to significantly increase its truck handling capacity, support export growth in the agribusiness and industrial sectors, and further reinforce trade links between Morocco and Europe,” said Loubna Ghaleb, Board Member and Director of Strategy at Tanger Med Group.

“This is our second guarantee project in Morocco under the non-honoring product, which will be instrumental in improving the port infrastructure,” said Hiroshi Matano, MIGA’s Executive Vice President. “MIGA hopes to deploy its non-honoring product for other state-owned enterprises in the country to help strengthen its productivity.”

“This project will strengthen Morocco’s position as growing global maritime and logistics hub, ideally placed to connect key markets in Europe, Africa, and the Americas,” said David Tinel, IFC’s Regional Manager for the Maghreb. “We expect this project will serve to draw other investors into Morocco’s infrastructure sector to capitalize on the tremendous opportunities presented as the country gears up to co-organize the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations and host the 2030 FIFA World Cup.”

Tanger Med Port Complex is the leading container port in Africa and the Mediterranean, with direct maritime connectivity to 180 ports and 70 countries. Tanger Med Group aims to support gender diversity by implementing programs to promote women’s access to jobs and leadership roles, with a target to increase women managers.

In addition, as a part of its strategy to become a clean energy hub and in line with its decarbonization plan, Tanger Med has set a goal of increasing the share of green electricity usage – solar and wind. The project also incorporates measures to mitigate climate risks, such as raising the elevation of breakwaters and quays to counter sea level rise, and extending the quays to accommodate larger, lower-emission vessels.

The expansion will boost Morocco’s trade capabilities and regional connectivity, with ripple effects across multiple sectors of the economy. The project also aligns with MIGA’s strategy to support resilient infrastructure and regional integration.

For more than 60 years, IFC has worked with public and private sector partners to support small businesses, manufacturers, agribusinesses, infrastructure, the financial sector, and more in the Maghreb. In the past three fiscal years, IFC has invested and mobilized $1.5 billion in the Maghreb to support sustainable economic development.