Morocco delays tender for $1bn LNG import terminal and gas pipeline project

Morocco has postponed the opening of bids for a strategic project to build a liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminal and a domestic gas pipeline network with an estimated cost of about $1bn, Al Arabiya Business reported on February 2.

The project includes an LNG terminal and a gas pipeline linking the Nador West Med port to the Maghreb–Europe Gas Pipeline (GME), extending to industrial sites in Mohammedia.

The Ministry of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development said that the decision follows the presence of “new data and assumptions related to this project, which is of major strategic importance for the country.” It did not provide further details, but said the project has attracted interest from several foreign and international companies, adding that any new developments related to the tender process would be announced in due course.

The delay comes as Morocco increases its focus on natural gas as part of its energy transition strategy. The government plans to invest about $3.5bn to raise gas consumption from roughly 1.2bn cubic metres currently to 12bn cubic metres by 2030. Natural gas is seen as a transition fuel that can help reduce reliance on coal in power generation and energy-intensive industries while supporting the expansion of renewable energy.

Morocco currently produces less than 100mn cubic metres of natural gas annually from small onshore fields in the west of the country, with reserves nearing depletion. The remainder of domestic demand, estimated at around 1bn cubic metres per year, is met through imports from international markets.

In 2025, the ministry also launched a separate tender for a floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) with an annual capacity of 5bn cubic metres, to be stationed at Nador West Med, a new port and industrial complex backed by public and private investments of about MAD 51bn ($5.56bn).