Mining market in Morocco

Morocco has an established mining tradition with regular production of mineral substances including:

• phosphates
• lead
• zinc
• copper
• gold
• silver
• cobalt
• manganese
• fluorine
• barite

Notably, Morocco is home to three quarters of the planet’s known phosphate reserves and is the world’s top exporter of crude phosphates. This mining landscape, combined with newly adopted legislation on mining, has led the Fraser Institute in Canada to rank Morocco in 2021 as Africa’s most-attractive investment destination and 8th worldwide for global mining corporations. Despite the pandemic context, the Moroccan extractive sector achieved a favourable performance, due to rising prices of precious metals, specifically gold and silver, and strong global demand for phosphate and cobalt.

Key opportunities for Canadian mining suppliers

Mineral processing

The Moroccan mining sector is growing, with several projects aiming to make it more attractive to foreign investment (such as modernization of regulation, investment facilitation and reorganization of artisanal mining activity) and offering interesting opportunities to Canadian companies. Two Moroccan global companies with footprints in Africa, OCP Group and Managem, have expansion programs and have needs in both open-pit and underground mines. Canadian companies could get involved in:

• project engineering
• (processing and enhancement) industrial engineering
• hydrometallurgy for copper, cobalt, potassium, tin and fertilizers

Environmental studies and sustainable development

Morocco announced a new, 2021 to 2030 mining plan accompanied by a green strategy for responsible and sustainable mining development. Morocco’s association agreement with the European Union (EU) commits the country to improving energy efficiency and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Furthermore, Morocco is a semi-arid country where water efficiency is essential to moving toward a more sustainable mining sector. Canadian companies could get involved in the following green mining projects:

• environmental impact studies
• rehabilitation of mining sites
• implementation of solar- and wind-power projects
• water treatment and reusing of wastewater
• soil stabilizers, dust collection systems, ventilation systems, water filtration and erosion control

Mine site construction

New copper, potassium and tin mines will open in 2023; some of these mines are deep underground mines. Canadian companies could find opportunities for:

• engineering projects for mine construction
• deep mining techniques
• deep underground drilling
• deep tunnelling and descending shaft construction

Notable challenges for Canadian mining suppliers in Morocco

• The Moroccan government imposes a withholding tax of 10% on services
• Morocco is a price buyer and price-sensitive market
• Procurement and purchasing decisions in remote areas are often made by the site operators
• Operators favour direct contact communication over email exchanges

Morocco business landscape

• Morocco is linked to the European Union by an association agreement with full tariff removal of industrial products since 2012. After having obtained “most favoured nation status” with the EU, Morocco is now negotiating a comprehensive free trade agreement with the bloc 
• In 2021, the United Kingdom and Morocco signed an agreement that aims to ensure the continuity of bilateral relations following the U.K.’s exit from the EU
• Morocco is a member of the Agadir Agreement, the free-trade area that also includes Egypt, Jordan and Tunisia, and a signatory to bilateral free trade agreements with the United Arab Emirates, Türkiye and the United States
• Canada and Morocco are discussing an exploratory foreign investment promotion and protection agreement
• Canada and Morocco have a double taxation agreement

Request a meeting

To learn more about the mining industry in Morocco, contact Zouhair Kanouni (Zouhair.Kanouni@international.gc.ca), Trade Commissioner, at the Embassy of Canada to Morocco.