Sète Port Expansion Scrapped: Morocco-France Ferry Link in Jeopardy

The Occitanie region has definitively abandoned the project for a new maritime station at the port of Sète (owned by the Occitanie region) which planned for 300,000 passengers per year, reports Les Échos. This decision is justified by the additional cost of the energy crisis, estimated at around 141 million euros on the finances of the local authority in 2023 compared to 2022, the cost of the equipment which has risen to 70 million euros this year compared to 55 million in 2015.

"This increase would have been difficult to control in the coming years, with the continued inflation, particularly on material prices," explains Sébastien Denaja, PS regional councilor and president of the port council. Fallen into disuse, the current Orsetti maritime station will continue to operate until its demolition. Remains to be seen whether the abandonment of this project will have an impact on maritime links to Morocco.