Morocco’s Nador West Med Port Threatens Spain’s Maritime Dominance in Mediterranean

Located about 50 kilometers from the city of Melilla, the future "Nador West Med" port is expected to start operations at the end of 2026 or the beginning of 2027, with an initial capacity estimated at 3.5 million containers per year. This capacity can reach 5.5 million containers, approaching the 4.7 million containers achieved by the port of Algeciras in 2024.

The future "Nador West Med" port also includes a free industrial zone of 8,000 hectares, with an integrated energy platform including fuel and coal stations, and a project for a floating liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal connected to the Maghreb-Europe gas pipeline, as part of an energy transition plan to which Morocco has planned to allocate a budget of 11 billion euros by 2030.

With the port of Tanger Med, which reached a total of 10.2 million containers and 140 million tons of goods in 2024, "Nador West Med" represents a real threat to the Spanish ports in the western Mediterranean. This is why some Spanish circles are calling on the competent authorities to take urgent structural actions to preserve the strategic position of the port of Algeciras in the Mediterranean.

The construction project of the "Nador West Med" port benefits from the support of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) to the tune of more than 300 million euros. This European financial support has sparked outrage among officials in Melilla and other Spanish cities, who believe that in doing so, Brussels is indirectly supporting a competitor to the Spanish ports.