Maroc, a telecommunications firm controlled by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Inwi, a domestic rival owned by Morocco’s royal family, have settled a long-running dispute and agreed to launch two joint ventures to expand and upgrade the kingdom’s telecom networks.
The surprise détente is a significant breakthrough for Maroc Telecom, which has succeeded in reducing the compensation it owed Inwi and fixes a kink in the close relationship between Morocco and the UAE.
The UAE’s former telecom monopoly E& (formerly Etisalat) paid €4.14 billion – $5.7 billion at the time – to buy Vivendi’s 53 percent stake in Maroc Telecom, which also has operations in several French-speaking African countries including Niger and Burkina Faso.
In 2021 Inwi accused Maroc Telecom of unfair competition practices. A court agreed, ordering Maroc Telecom last year to pay its smaller rival MAD6.38 billion ($661 million) in compensation.
Maroc Telecom failed in an appeal but has now agreed an out-of-court settlement to pay Inwi MAD4.38 billion ($455 million).
The companies also signed a deal to launch two joint ventures: FiberCo, which will build fibre optic networks to 3 million homes within five years, and TowerCo, which will construct 2,000 telecom towers within three years to facilitate the roll-out of 5G.
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The tie-ups require regulatory approval. Their first phase is worth AED4.4 billion ($1.2 billion), according to a press release announcing the agreement.
These deals underscore the importance of the UAE to Morocco’s economic development efforts.
Last July Morocco and the UAE finalised terms for a comprehensive economic partnership agreement (Cepa) that the two countries said would “launch a new chapter of mutually beneficial trade and investment ties”.
The agreement will reduce or remove tariffs, eliminate “unnecessary” trade barriers, improve market access for services and enhance customs harmonisation.
It follows a joint declaration in December 2023 that included tentative agreements for the UAE to part-fund Morocco’s high-speed rail network expansion as well as other projects including a Morocco-Nigeria gas pipeline and investments in the energy, agriculture, water and aviation sectors.
The UAE has invested $15 million in Morocco, making it the largest Arab investor in the kingdom, according to a press release announcing the Cepa.
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