Morocco Considers Highway Toll Increases to Address National Company’s Debt

Will toll rates be increased? During a presentation before the infrastructure commission on Tuesday, in response to the recommendations of the temporary exploratory mission on the National Motorway Company (ADM), Nizar Baraka, indicated that measures "are currently being studied as part of the new program contract with the National Motorway Company of Morocco in order to control the debt". One of these measures is "the examination of the possibility of revising the toll rate as a means of achieving financial balance," the minister specified. According to Baraka, it appears necessary to reconsider the framework agreement signed in 2019 with the company that set the concession contract duration at 99 years.

The company’s annual financial deficit amounts to 1 billion dirhams, while more than 500 km of the network record low traffic. According to the minister, this financial deficit could continue until 2033. Measures have then been put in place to control the debt. These include strengthening own assets, improving the debt ratio, which has gone from 4 to 1.5, as well as the integration of all concession contracts into a single 99-year contract, which has ensured profitability for the company. Another measure: the restructuring of the company’s debt between 2016 and 2020, for an amount of 15.5 billion dirhams, or 40% of the total debt.

This operation "made it possible to reduce the debt service by about 5 billion dirhams over the period 2016-2032," Baraka said. Furthermore, it appears from the minister’s explanations that the economic model of investment in highways is characterized by a long-term return on investment due to the high cost of investment compared to short and medium-term revenues. "The total investment in the motorway infrastructure in Morocco has reached 55 billion dirhams," he specified.