Last February, the South Korean manufacturer Hyundai Rotem won the tender launched by the National Railway Office (ONCF) for the supply of 110 RER trains. With an initial deadline set for 2030, that date now appears to be pushed back. Not all the trains can be delivered by then, a source close to the matter tells us, noting that delivery will instead extend until 2032.

Nonetheless, the manufacturer is moving forward. In two years, in 2027, Hyundai Rotem will deliver a design for the future Moroccan RER. « Le design a été commencé avant même de signer le contrat », the same source tells us. Once the design work is completed, production of the first carriage can begin in South Korea.

Train derived from two models

These future trains will be a mix between the double-decker model operating in Sydney, the Mariyung trains, and the South Korean ITX-Cheongchun train, the same source explains. The future RER will therefore be equipped with double-decker cars, particularly at the ends of the trainsets, but single-level cars will also be part of the train.

Of the 440 carriages ordered by the ONCF, corresponding to the 110 RER trains, 280 will be assembled in South Korea before being shipped by boat. The remaining cars, 160 in total, will be manufactured in Morocco at the future Hyundai plant in Benguerir. This facility will be brought into service in 2029, we are told.

With this unit, Hyundai Rotem’s activities in Morocco could extend beyond manufacturing the RER trains to include rail maintenance, as well as future contracts for extending the high-speed line (LGV) to Agadir. Moreover, this centrally positioned global base also brings the South Korean manufacturer closer to the European market.

Written in French by La rédaction, edited in English by Eric Nielson