West Med Container Terminal has completed operational trials at the eastern container terminal of Morocco’s Nador West Med port with the Liberia-flagged MSC Nita, IMO 9084607, clearing the facility for its first commercial calls, according to a company statement.
Preparations were completed ahead of the original schedule and included terminal fit-out, equipment installation, deployment of operating systems and processes, and recruitment and training of staff.
The MSC Nita test call was used to check equipment and systems under operating conditions and validate coordination between terminal teams.
The eastern terminal has 1,520 metres of quay, an 18-metre draft and 70 hectares of yard space, with an ultimate annual capacity of 3.4m TEU. Commissioning of the first phase had previously been scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2026.
WMCT has also secured a €196.7m ($228m) 15-year project-finance facility from Attijariwafa Bank, Banque Centrale Populaire and Bank of Africa to partly fund the first section of the terminal, which carries an investment cost of nearly €253m ($293m).
No date has been disclosed for the first commercial vessel call or for the services that will inaugurate regular operations.
WMCT is the concessionaire for the eastern container terminal and is owned by Moroccan port operator Marsa Maroc with 50% plus one share and Terminal Investment Limited with 50% minus one share. Marsa Maroc operates 34 terminals across 20 Moroccan ports and handles more than 60m tonnes of cargo annually.
Terminal Investment Limited is MSC Group’s container-terminal subsidiary, while Mediterranean Shipping Company is the group’s shipping company.