German Firm to Conduct Feasibility Study for Morocco-Spain Tunnel

A new step towards the realization of the Morocco-Spain tunnel. The Spanish public company for studies on fixed communication through the Strait of Gibraltar (SECEGSA) has chosen the company Herrenknecht Iberica, a subsidiary of the German Herrenknecht, one of the world leaders in tunnel boring machine construction, to carry out the feasibility study of this underwater rail infrastructure, reports Arabian Gulf Business Insight.

"The Strait of Gibraltar is a bottleneck for traffic between North Africa and Europe - a tunnel would significantly increase the efficiency of freight and passenger transport," explains the Herrenknecht spokesperson, noting that this mega-project poses extreme challenges in terms of technology and logistics. She will add: "The feasibility study that has just been commissioned is precisely about this: can these challenges be overcome and what solutions would be needed?"

38.5 kilometers long, including 27.7 kilometers underwater, the tunnel under the strait is expected to connect Punta Paloma, near Tarifa, to Tangier in Morocco. This route "will promote the development of transport networks between Spain and Morocco and create an unprecedented area of cooperation between the European Union and the Maghreb," the Spanish company for studies on fixed communications through the Strait of Gibraltar (SECEGSA) had assured. According to the Spanish authorities, the tunnel will allow to connect Madrid and Casablanca in five and a half hours, which is faster than the current 12-hour journey by car and ferry.