Morocco: Alsa gradually pushed out

This is a brutal change of situation for the Alsa group. After having dominated without sharing the urban transport of the main Moroccan metropolises, the Spanish operator has just lost the operation of the networks of Marrakech and Agadir. These setbacks directly benefit a powerful local player: the ONCF. The public railway group, determined to extend its influence on urban mobility, has imposed itself in the call for tenders of the ochre city through its subsidiary Supratours, outpacing Alsa’s proposal in the final phase, according to Expansion.

This victory illustrates the authorities’ determination to regain control of a strategic sector. In Marrakech, Supratours will now operate 67 lines over more than 1,300 kilometers, with a fleet of 349 buses designed to absorb an annual demand of 37 million passenger-kilometers. In Agadir, the situation is similar: Alsa is sidelined, leaving the final place to the ONCF against another Spanish alliance, Avanza and Autasa. This renewal of concessions is part of a global strategy of the Ministry of the Interior, with a budget of more than 1.04 billion euros, aimed at acquiring more than 3,700 new buses and modernizing infrastructure.

Alsa’s dominance, a subsidiary of Mobico, is therefore beginning to erode seriously. Until this year, the company was the absolute leader with 333 million annual passengers, 6,000 employees and the management of the networks of Casablanca, Rabat, Tangier, Marrakech and Agadir. While the group still retains the major Casablanca contract, which represents a billion euros in turnover, competition is intensifying. The Tangier network must also be the subject of a call for tenders in the near future.

Faced with this increased pressure in Morocco, Alsa is looking for growth relays in the Middle East. Already present in Saudi Arabia with 27 long-distance lines, the group has won a 500 million euro contract to serve the future Qiddiya complex near Riyadh, and is positioning itself for the future Medina express bus service.