Colas Rail's Morocco High-Speed Rail Contracts Hit $323 Million

Colas Rail's disclosed contracts on Morocco's Kénitra–Marrakech high-speed railway now total €279 million, roughly $323 million, after the French contractor landed a fresh €29 million award covering work around Casablanca.

Colas announced the contract on 12 November. Morocco's National Railway Office (ONCF) selected the company to carry out railway, electrical and civil-engineering work on the section between Roches-Noires station and ONCF's Nouaceur maintenance centre. The scope includes modifying existing tracks, building new sections and installing the overhead electrical equipment that powers the trains. The contract entered Colas Rail's order book in October. The company disclosed neither a start date nor a completion deadline.

How the $323 million breaks down

The new award sits on top of two contracts worth a combined €250 million — approximately $289 million — that Colas Rail secured in January 2025:

• A €200 million contract covering design and construction of railway tracks, overhead electrical lines and substations.
• A €50 million contract covering superstructure and civil-engineering work on railway lines that stay in operation during construction.

Add the €29 million Casablanca award and Colas Rail's direct participation reaches €279 million. That figure is the rail arm alone. It should not be confused with the wider Colas group's footprint.

GTR, the group's Moroccan road and civil-engineering subsidiary, separately won a contract worth nearly €180 million for earthworks, bridges and other infrastructure. Count GTR in, and the wider group's disclosed railway contracts climb to roughly €459 million, or $531 million. Colas Rail's own share stays at €279 million.

Why Morocco keeps the orders coming

"Morocco is a strategic market for Colas Rail," company president Hervé Le Joliff said in the announcement. He added that the new award extended the company's longstanding relationship with ONCF and strengthened its involvement in Morocco's high-speed railway development.

The relationship runs deep. Colas Rail has operated in Morocco for more than 17 years, employs around 550 people across 12 railway-related specialities, and says its teams have delivered more than 40 projects in the country. It previously built the track and overhead electrical systems for Morocco's first high-speed line, the Tangier–Kénitra corridor, between 2014 and 2018.

What does the extension change for Morocco?

Morocco launched construction of the Kénitra–Marrakech extension in April 2025, part of a wider programme to modernise and expand the national railway system. The route pushes the existing Al Boraq high-speed service — which currently links Tangier with Kénitra and Casablanca — southwards to Marrakech, one of the country's largest tourist destinations.

The deadline is fixed by football. Morocco will co-host the 2030 FIFA World Cup with Spain and Portugal, and plans to stage matches in Casablanca, Rabat, Tangier, Marrakech, Agadir and Fez. The railway expansion is expected to cut journey times between Morocco's major commercial and tourist centres while lifting passenger capacity before the tournament. It sits alongside upgrades to airports, stadiums, roads and urban infrastructure in the same national preparation effort.

For Colas Rail and its parent Bouygues' infrastructure arm, the Casablanca award cements a repeat-client position in a market where ONCF will keep spending through the decade. For Morocco, the bet is that steel and copper laid before 2030 pays off in visitors long after the final whistle. Expect further contract awards across the corridor as the 2030 deadline tightens and construction moves south from Casablanca towards Marrakech.