Europe-Asia Green Corridors

Morocco could be a major beneficiary of Europe’s switch to green shipping fuels. The majority of container ships travelling between Asia and Europe bunker at hubs like Singapore and Rotterdam. But bunkering in Asia once and a second time in Morocco, instead of Western Europe, could be a viable strategy for container ships. Those vessels could complete 26% more journeys when running on green ammonia or 8% more journeys when running on green methanol.

Given that two-thirds of Europe-Asia traffic passes through the Strait of Gibraltar and 80% of the energy used by European ships is set to be based on green hydrogen by 2050, Morocco is best positioned to increase its role as a major bunkering hub. The country also has the third biggest solar power generation capacity (734 MW) in Africa and is the second biggest wind power producer (1.4 GW) on the continent – a major advantage given the significant amounts of renewable energy needed to produce green hydrogen.

Morocco is currently a minor player in Europe - East Asia marine bunkering. Fuel sales from 2023 show that out of the top 16 fuel producing locations, Morocco was the nation that bunkered the least heavy oil and low sulphur oil. A change in bunkering patterns would therefore represent a major economic opportunity for the country.