Casablanca desalination plant: Akhannouch denounces ten years of political deadlock

Thursday 11 September 2025 - 13:30

By: Sahili Aya

Casablanca desalination plant: Akhannouch denounces ten years of political deadlock

Moroccan Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch has accused previous governments of allowing political disputes to delay the construction of Casablanca’s long-awaited seawater desalination plant for more than a decade. According to him, this delay deprived millions of citizens of a vital solution to the country’s growing water shortages.

In an interview broadcast Wednesday evening on public channels Al Aoula and 2M, Akhannouch stressed that his administration has accelerated the pace of desalination projects, including the Casablanca facility, which is expected to be operational by late 2026. Other projects are also planned in Rabat, Nador, Tangier, and Tiznit.

“We inherited a heavy legacy in the water sector, a subject often avoided in political debate,” the prime minister declared. He explained that at the time of his government’s arrival, water reserves in Casablanca and Rabat barely covered three to four months of consumption.

A temporary improvement came with rainfall, and later with the launch of the “water highway,” which transferred 300 million cubic meters from the Sebou basin to the Abouregreg basin, preventing a major water crisis in Morocco’s two largest cities.

Akhannouch emphasized that the Casablanca desalination plant should have been launched years earlier: “We are facing a ten-year delay due to political calculations,” he said. The plant, along with others under construction, will serve both drinking water supply and agricultural irrigation.

The prime minister also rejected accusations of conflicts of interest in the Casablanca project, insisting that the tender was transparent and won by a Spanish-Moroccan consortium. “It is a $1 billion investment combining renewable energy and desalination. Investors are putting their own money into their country. There are no subsidies involved,” he stated.

Critics, however, accuse the government of favoring export-oriented agriculture that consumes large volumes of water. Akhannouch responded that the water used for export crops amounts to about 500 million cubic meters, while imported grains and other goods represent the equivalent of over 2 billion cubic meters, keeping the balance positive for Morocco.

Looking ahead, Akhannouch underlined that his government’s priorities for the political season include advancing major social reforms in education, health, and social protection, while continuing to invest in water and agriculture.