Spain’s €754 million loan to Morocco carries a 0.5% interest rate
Spain granted Morocco a €754.3 million loan to finance the purchase of trains. In March 2025, Madrid refused to disclose the interest rate, citing diplomatic relations. Yet an official Spanish Treasury document reveals particularly favorable terms: 0.5% over 30 years.
It all began on March 2, 2025. A Spanish citizen asked the Ministry of Economy to disclose the interest rate on a loan granted a few weeks earlier to Morocco’s National Office of Railways (ONCF). Approved on February 11, the financing is intended to allow Morocco to acquire up to 40 intercity trains.
The response came on March 21: a refusal. In documents published by the Spanish Council for Transparency, the ministry justified its decision by citing the risk of harming Spain’s foreign relations, particularly in the commercial and financial spheres.
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The administration considered the interest rate sensitive information, whose disclosure could complicate negotiations on future credit agreements with other countries. The requester challenged this position and appealed to the Council for Transparency on April 9.
A 0.5% interest rate already published by the Treasury
The case took an unexpected turn on May 9. In its response to the Council, the ministry acknowledged that the Spanish Public Treasury publishes quarterly details of loans granted to foreign public borrowers, including their interest rates. It then provided a link to the publication.
The official first-quarter 2025 table gives the exact terms of the financing for Morocco: 754 302 566 euros, an interest rate of 0.50%, a repayment term of 30 years and a five-year grace period. The ONCF is named as the borrower, with the Kingdom of Morocco providing the guarantee.
The loan comes under the Spanish Fund for the Internationalization of Enterprises (FIEM). It is intended to finance trains supplied by Spanish manufacturer CAF, as part of Morocco’s major rail fleet renewal program. The contract had notably been the subject of discussions over delivery times for the Spanish trainsets.
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After receiving the link to the information he had requested, the requester withdrew his appeal on May 16, 2025. Three days later, the Council for Transparency closed the case definitively, without having to rule on the legality of the ministry’s initial refusal.
