Morocco-Spain Tunnel Project Estimated at 6 Billion Euros Ahead of 2030 World Cup

More details on the project to build a tunnel under the Strait of Gibraltar to connect Morocco and Spain before the 2030 World Cup. The cost of the project is estimated at around 6 billion euros, reveals The Sun. According to the Spanish press, the two countries are now opting for a rail tunnel instead of a tunnel "allowing the circulation of vehicles, due to problems related to traffic congestion, which could cause many problems, especially at peak times, due to the intensification of the number of freight carriers transiting through the Strait of Gibraltar." A rail tunnel that will allow the transport of vehicles and trucks, as well as the circulation of high-speed trains.

The project will be on the agenda of the next High-Level Meeting between the two countries scheduled for between May and June, specified the National Society for the Study of the Strait of Gibraltar (SNED). On the agenda of the meeting, the development of a roadmap to assess the studies carried out and finalize the design of this large-scale project; the validation of the 2023-2025 work plan, which will include, alongside the overall strategy that will be approved at the same time, the analysis of the feasibility of building a reconnaissance gallery to identify the geo-mechanical characteristics.

The future tunnel, "whose preliminary studies define the distance at 38.7 km, of which 27.8 km under water, at the confluence between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, will not only transport thousands of passengers and goods between two rail terminals, 42 km apart and served by high-speed shuttle trains (HST)," but it will also facilitate the movement of people and goods between Africa and Europe.