- Published 2026.11.05 15:00
Mandatory localization rate at Benguerir plant adjusted down to 35%, below initial target
First delivery in August 2028, with 110 trainsets to be supplied sequentially
Hyundai Rotem has confirmed that the final trainset of the 2.2 trillion won (about $1.6 billion) regional express railway (RER) electric multiple units ordered by Morocco's national railway operator ONCF will be delivered in March 2032. The mandatory localization rate for the local production plant has been adjusted downward from the level the company initially targeted. The move comes as the Moroccan government's detailed implementation plan for its large-scale railway infrastructure modernization project, being pursued ahead of the 2030 World Cup, takes shape.
According to Moroccan media outlet Le Desk on Nov. 5, Abdessamad Kayouh, Morocco's minister of transport and logistics, appeared before the House of Representatives' infrastructure committee on Nov. 3 and announced the detailed schedule for ONCF's rolling stock renewal program along with the 2027 budget proposal. Minister Kayouh said the first of the 110 RER trainsets supplied by Hyundai Rotem will be delivered to Morocco in August 2028, and the last in March 2032.
Detailed figures were also presented for the industrial cooperation plan for local production. Morocco's Ministry of Transport and Logistics set the mandatory localization rate at 35% for the railway vehicle plant Hyundai Rotem will build in Benguerir, a city in the central-western inland region. This is reportedly a downward adjustment from the roughly 60% localization rate Hyundai Rotem initially targeted during the bidding process. Hyundai Rotem will manufacture 280 of the total 440 cars in Korea and ship them by sea, while the remaining 160 cars will be assembled and produced at the Benguerir plant, which is scheduled to begin operations in 2029.
The project is part of a 29 billion dirham (about 4.06 trillion won) railway network expansion project ordered by Morocco to co-host the 2030 FIFA World Cup with Spain and Portugal. In February 2025, ONCF held a global tender and signed vehicle supply contracts with France's Alstom (18 high-speed trainsets), Spain's CAF (40 intercity trainsets), and Hyundai Rotem (110 RER trainsets).
Hyundai Rotem's contract is worth 2.2027 trillion won (about $1.6 billion), the largest among the three companies' orders. It is also the largest single overseas railway project order in Hyundai Rotem's history.
Along with vehicle supply, a long-term local maintenance ecosystem will also be established. In June 2026, Hyundai Rotem signed a separate 748.2 billion won (about $552 million) maintenance contract with ONCF. Through a joint venture established by the two sides, they will carry out maintenance, parts management, and heavy maintenance technical support for all 440 cars over the next 20 years.
The Moroccan government plans to foster a domestic railway industry ecosystem based on the Benguerir plant and the maintenance joint venture. In the mid- to long-term, it aims to use them as an export base for railway vehicles to Africa and the Middle East.
The double-decker electric multiple units to be supplied by Hyundai Rotem will be built to a maximum speed of 160 kilometers per hour. The trains will operate on a public transportation network connecting major hubs such as Casablanca, Morocco's largest city, the capital Rabat, and Marrakech.
(Dollar figures are approximate, converted automatically at 1,000 won = $0.738, the rate on Nov. 8, 2026.)
※ This article is an AI translation of the Korean original published by Korea Credit News; it was checked by automated quality guards and published by the English edition desk.
